


Sheltered

by WeebTrashKun



Series: You've Become My Shelter [1]
Category: Ao no Exorcist | Blue Exorcist
Genre: All students aged up to at least 18, Angst, CYOA Elements, Canon-Typical Violence, Explicit Language, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Liberties are kinda taken with certain demonic mechanics, Medium Burn, Multi, Multiple Endings, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Reader plays like every sport in existence, Reader-Insert, Rivals to Friends to ???, Somehow Mephisto's managed to get the fluffiest scenes so far, Suggestive Themes, These chapters are just getting longer and longer help
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:21:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 46
Words: 68,807
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22645558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WeebTrashKun/pseuds/WeebTrashKun
Summary: Mephisto, Demon King of Time, raised you, a normal human child, with no knowledge of Ghenna, demons, or Satan whatsoever. However, between the appearance of Rin Okumura, the will of the Vatican, and Mephisto's own schemes, the careful shelter built around you for years from all things satanic might very soon come crumbling down...[Reader/Various]**Updates Mondays**
Relationships: Amaimon (Ao no Exorcist)/Reader, Mephisto Pheles & Reader, Moriyama Shiemi/Reader, Okumura Rin/Reader, Various/Reader
Series: You've Become My Shelter [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1630717
Comments: 132
Kudos: 214





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not suuuppeerr proud of these first two chapters, so they'll probably be edited later on lol
> 
> What you're seeing here is the beginning to a slew of Blue Exorcist fics that I've written this week alone
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the birth of a new life comes a new pawn in the King of Time's grand scheme.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the shortest chapter that'll ever be in this fic lmao. Every other chapter's at least ten times this length, trust me. 
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

It was snowing the day you were born. 

A man cloaked in blinding ivory unintentionally blended into the surrounding environment quite well, standing tall, completely unaffected by the cold. A woman kneeled before him, presenting your newborn form. She spoke. "Please...take this child and keep her safe from the horrors of our homeland..."

The man in white lifted your infant body into his arms. He held you gently, as if he'd had decades of preparation for this occasion. Almost as soon as he did, the woman collapsed, bleeding out onto the snow below her.

" _Intriguing_..." The demon looked down at your sleeping figure, emerald eyes filled with something akin to joy. "Yes, my dear, I believe you'll do quite nicely..."

Looking at the woman's motionless figure, he knew it wouldn't be there for much longer. He knelt down gently, grasping the necklace your mother had around her neck and yanked on it. The clasp immediately gave way, breaking. He held the tethered jewel in his hand, running his thumb against the red teardrop for a moment before standing once more.

Smiling, the man snapped his fingers and the pair disappeared. 


	2. Errand Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A mission from Mephisto leads you into meeting Rin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First chapter was pretty short, so I'm posting this one now to hopefully make up for it. This one's a lot longer lol. Most chapters are probably gonna be about this length, but, unfortunately that means they'll be probably posted kinda late.
> 
> I can say with confidence tho that the next chapter'll most likely be posted next week!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Leave it to Papa to turn me into his errand girl." You sighed, shaking your head. Mephisto had been clear in his directions:

_"Please give this key to Mister Okumura," Your father requested, gently passing the key into your hand. "This is an important task, so I'm trusting you'll get it done."_

_"Alright." You nodded, running your thumb across the golden key, looking it over. He'd never given you any sort of errand like this before, so why he decided not to send someone else or just do it himself, you had no clue. Suspicious? Perhaps, but he offered you a bag of your favorite chips as a reward, so you wouldn't question it much further. "What does it go to anyway? I'm starting classes next week too, but you haven't given me any sorta key."_

_"Awe, is my precious daughter jealous?" It only took a split-second for Mephisto to take your cheeks into his hands and start pinching, much to your chagrin. "Don't worry my dear, it's just the key to the cram school. Only students involved in the afterschool program receive one, so of course you didn't get one!"_

_"Papa..." You whined through aching cheeks._

You looked back down to the key in your hand for what felt like the millionth time that afternoon. 

"Cram school, huh?" You hummed in thought. That was your father's big project he'd been managing for as long as you could remember. You didn't even consider signing up yourself. You were never very studious, so the thought of willingly filling up your free time away from class with _more class_ was almost enough to give you a headache.

That was when you spotted Rin Okumura. 

He stuck out like a sore thumb, wandering like a lost puppy through the hallway. He'd certainly look cute with the ears and tail now that you thought about it. You giggled at the imagery of the boy having such features in your head.

"Huh, who's there!?" Rin suddenly turned around, watching as you approached. Boy, he sure was jumpy. You decided to walk up to him slowly, offering a friendly wave and matching smile to hopefully calm his nerves.

"You're Rin Okumura, right?" You asked, though it was more of a formality at this point.

"Uh, yeah..." Rin's eyes widened in surprise. You were the first person to willingly approach him all day. Everyone else had just seemed to give him weird looks and whisper behind his back like he was some sort of weirdo. Not to mention, a cute girl like you coming up to him out of the blue like this was kind of suspicious if you asked him. The only type of girl that ever really spoke to him even before coming to the academy just seemed to be interested in his brother. "Who're you?"

"My name is Princess (Y/n) Faust III, esteemed to make your acquaintance!" You gave an extravagant bow the same way your father did everytime he made an introduction. It had always seemed a bit over the top in your opinion, but Mephisto was over the top doing almost everything, so you couldn't really fault him there. Rin stumbled in response, clearly not expecting the greeting and in return, you burst into laughter. Taking a few seconds to let it all out, you began wiping tears from your eyes and straightening up once more. "You should see your face dude!"

"H-hey!" Rin didn't seem too amused. Why did he always seem to attract weirdos? He knew a pretty girl wanting to speak to him on his first day was too good to be true! "Who are you really!?"

Geez, this kid was funny. This school year was guaranteed to be fun with a guy like him around. 

Once you calmed down enough to speak again, you replied. "It's true! The name's Faust. (Y/n) Faust. Nice to meet you."

"So you're related to that clown!" Rin exclaimed, pointing his index finger right into your face. You rolled your eyes in response. 

"Hey, _that clown_ is my father." You crossed your arms in disapproval. However foolish the man could be, he had still taken you in and raised you. You cared about him, not that you'd ever admit it out loud. There was no reason for this kid to insult him, and much less for you to just standby and let him. 

If Mephisto had spoken to this Rin guy personally though, it probably wasn't under the best circumstances considering the last time your father went out of town was for a funeral. Rin might just need to interact more with the older man. 

Besides, it wouldn't do you any good to be getting off on the wrong foot with the only boy you knew your age so far, so, after a lot of consideration, you figured you'd let it slide this time. You sighed, a small smile forming on your face. "But...yeah. He can be kind of funny sometimes."

You uncrossed your arms, taking Rin's hand into your own.

"Here, he told me to give this to you. Don't lose it!" You handed over the key your father had given you earlier. "It goes to the cram school apparently."

"Huh? And where's that?" Rin asked, holding the key close to his face as if to examine it. You had to resist the urge to start laughing again.

"Dunno." You shrugged. Mephisto never told you the exact location of the cram school and you honestly didn't think to ask. If anything, you'd figured that Rin would probably know, being the one enrolled and all. Luckily for him, as far as you knew, classes didn't start till next week, so he still had time to find out. "I don't do cram school. You might just have to try it on every door in the academy." 

"What!? No way!" The boy clutched the hair on his head at the mere thought of having to hike throughout the ginormous campus just to find out where to use one stupid key. He'd be out all night- no, all year- just to check half of them! There had to be some other way. His gaze on you returned as a glare. "If you're that clown's daughter, you had to have been going here for years now, right? Shouldn't you know your way around by now?"

"Up until now, I've been homeschooled my whole life." You shook your head. The labyrinth making up the gigantic school was as a mystery to you as it was to the boy in front of you.

Growing up, Belial would always take care of your lessons at home. It was boring, but despite that and your lack of interest in schooling, he was a pretty good teacher.

Returning to reality, you gestured out of the nearest window to the mansion on the very top of the hill. "My father's servant was my teacher and we'd always just use one of the old entertainment rooms for classes."

"So the purple bastard's got the kind of wealth it takes to have servants..." Rin seemed almost lost in his own fantasy, picturing your father's riches as well as a fleet of butlers ready to serve him. 

"Just the one. Let's get back to finding the cram school though." You flicked the boy's forehead, pulling him out of his daydream. You looked to the door closest to you, pointing him towards it. "Here's as good a place to start as any!"

"I am not trying every door in campus. That'd take forever!" Rin objected almost immediately. He'd just have to find the director himself and ask him. Considering you were related to the freak, you could probably point him in the right direction at least. Then again, you haven't exactly been very helpful so far...

"Oh don't be such a chicken!" You snatched the key from his hand, despite his protests. Shoving the key into the lock of the door before you, you quickly twisted it and were satisfied to hear a distinct click, signaling that it was now unlocked. A large grin took over your face as you pulled the door open, revealing a grand hallway lined up with rooms unlike the rest of the academy's. "Ta-da! See?"

Rin's eyes nearly blew out of their sockets, looking at you as if you'd just grown a second head. "Woah! You must be seriously lucky!" 

You could almost feel your ego physically grow larger, the expression on your face showing as much. 

"I see you and Mister Okumura are well acquainted now!" You stumbled out of your stupor to find your father now standing directly in the doorway of the hall that had just been empty a moment ago. Mephisto's smile grew at the surprised expression now painting Rin's face. "I knew I could count on you, Pumpkin! As promised: your reward."

The violet man tossed you a bag of chips, you catching them easily with a pleased hum in return.

"Thanks Papa!" You wasted no time popping open the bag, devouring the treat one chip at a time. 

"So, you call your old man 'Papa', huh?" You couldn't say you appreciated the sly smile sneaking it's way onto Rin's face. You glared as he continued. "That's pretty childish, don't you think?"

"Why, you!" Although you normally hated to waste good food, you didn't hesitate to chuck a particularly large chip into the boy's face.

"Hey, watch it!"

"You watch your mouth!" 

Just as the two of you were ready to go into all out brawl, a pink umbrella occupied the space between the two of you. Your attention was immediately taken by the object, any thought of annihilating Okumura disappearing in that moment. 

"Now, now children. You're classmates now, so you shouldn't fight." Mephisto scolded in that same tone of voice he always used whenever he would tease you, making it hard to tell if he were actually serious or not.

You cheeks flushed red, but not from his words. Rubbing the back of your neck sheepishly, you looked in the opposite direction of your father. 

"I can't believe you're still using that old thing..." You blindly gestured to the ice cream themed umbrella in front of you.

"Of course I do! It was a gift from my adoring daughter afterall!" Mephisto's grin seemed to grow into one more akin to pride, his chest puffing up in effect. You'd gotten that umbrella for him years ago, painting the ice cream on yourself with the help of Belial. Though the images were clearly handmade, the tiny device that he could barely fit just himself under was in pristine condition.

Rin could only blink at the exchange in front of him. He still couldn't believe this jester had a kid, much less one like you.

Your blush only grew as you brought up a hand to try and cover your reddening cheeks. "Papa..."

"Now, be a dear and head home to wash up for dinner. I'll be there soon." Your father gave you a quick pat on the head and that was clearly the end of the conversation. 

You simply nodded in response, turning to head down the hall, presumably in the direction of that giant mansion you had shown Rin earlier. Just before you were out if sight, you turned, shouting back to the strange boy you'd met just minutes ago. "Catch ya later, Chicken!"

"WHO'RE YOU CALLIN' CHICKEN!?" Rin screamed in return. Man, it was only his first day, he couldn't get such a degrading nickname so soon! Though, truthfully, he'd prefer not to have one at all.

"Isn't she lovely?" The purple exorcist seemed to be lost in his own delusion of what had just happened, completely ignoring the look on the younger demon's face that disagreed with him. Mephisto soon snapped out of it, turning on his heel and into the cram school's hallway. "Come, come, Mister Okumura. We mustn't lurk in doorways!"

Rin begrudgingly followed the clown, knowing this was a fight he wouldn't win. 

The door behind him snapped closed automatically as if some unknown force had pulled it shut. Rin's mind was on other things, however.

"Woah, this place is huge!" The demonic boy gazed in awe. This place was much bigger than the buildings designed for the academy's regular classes, which brought a question to mind. "Hey, how could this huge place fit inside the building we were just in?"

"It couldn't." Mephisto replied, seeming more amused than anything as they continued down the hall. "That key is a warp pad of sorts. It would've led you here no matter what door you used it on."

"So that girl wasn't really all that lucky afterall." Rin huffed. He'd be sure to rub that one right in your smug face later. Unless... "Wait a sec! Was she just pulling some kinda prank on me the whole time!?"

"Afraid not, Mister Okumura." The director replied, still not even glancing in the boy's direction. "(Y/n) has no knowledge of the cram school's secret or the special ability of that key." 

"Huh?" Rin was confused. The daughter of one of the world's most powerful exorcists didn't know that her father's school held secret classes to train people on how to slay demons? "So, she's not training to become an exorcist?"

"Nope! Afraid not!" Mephisto confirmed with a bright hum. "My daughter has no clue that demons even exist in our plane of reality! And if you want to continue your education here, you'll keep it that way~"

"But...why?" This conversation only seemed to confuse Rin more and more. His head was starting to hurt.

"You'll understand one day..." The man answered vaguely, dodging the question entirely and only sparing the boy beside him an ominous side glance.


	3. Paeonia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You meet Bon and decide it's about time someone knocked some sense into him.  
> Later on, you remember a promise someone made to you long ago...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the longest chapter so far lmao. I wound up finishing it today and didn't feel like waiting to post it, so here we are!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

Wiping the sweat from your brow, you made note that you'd have to thank Belial in advance somehow since he'd most likely be the one stuck washing your now-filthy soccer uniform when you got home. Your team had been working so hard all afternoon through different drills and techniques that you hadn't exactly had time to take in the state of your outfit until much later. That didn't bother you though; it was just physical proof you'd worked much harder than any of your teammates. 

You felt like you had to. You were the director's daughter afterall. You didn't want anyone to get the idea that your father was the only reason you'd received a spot on the team. Using your dad's name could be fun when messing with teachers or the people in town, sure, but sports were something you were actually passionate about and you wouldn't intentionally take any shortcuts at a single one you played.

Carrying your ball underneath your arm, you headed away from the field and into the direction of your home ontop of the hill. It was a long journey, yes, but you weren't afraid of a little hike, especially not on a nice day like this. 

It wasn't long before you spotted the fountain you had long ago designated the _"fancy fountain"_ as you passed through one of academy's many courtyards. You thought about maybe popping a coin in while you were there, but the train of thought halted after noticing a figure standing atop the fixture. It was Rin Okumura.

From what you could see, he didn't look too happy at all, probably something to do with the guys standing infront of him if you had to guess. There were three of them and, from what it looked like at your distance, they were ganging up on Okumura and some girl.

Strange; you didn't take the chicken to be the knight-in-shining-armor type, but, then again, stranger things have happened. If he was protecting that girl though, the least you could do is help out.

Setting your ball gently on the ground, you took a moment, using your fingers to calculate trajectory and all that. The next time you would ever spend this much time on anything related to mathmatics would probably be on the final exam your senior year. 

Meanwhile, Rin stood on the fountain's rim, ready to turn the fight physical if needed. 

"Son of a-!" The half-demon clenched his fist so hard it looked almost painful. This Bon guy was the absolute worst! How could he have ever thought someone like him was cool? "And what's up with you, huh? You're always with your crew! What's the matter? You afraid of being alone?"

Ryuji seemed taken aback, and even more so when his pink haired friend started laughing. The split-haired boy turned to glare at the offender. "What's so funny, Shima!?"

"He's right; we're always together!" The boy continued snickering as if it'd been a hilarious joke and not just an insult on his best friend. 

"Hey man, don't take his side!" Ryuji quickly turned back to glare at the Okumura, Rin mimicking the gesture in return. They stood like that for what seemed like hours until-

"Hey, watch out!"

And of course neither boy did. Bon was the one to suffer, however, when his face suddenly met hard, synthetic leather. The force from the soccer ball knocked him back, disorienting him for a moment as well as leaving a patterned print on his face. "Ow! What the hell man?" 

"Sorry, must've been a bad kick." You shrugged, not really seeming too apologetic at all despite your words. The ball simply rolled back to your feet soundlessly. You knelt down, picking it up and propped it right back under your arm. "Then again, it'd be hard not to accidentally hit a head that fat."

"Why, you!" Bon was up in your face in less than a second, clutching the front of your jersey in his fist, lifting you a solid inch or two.

"C'mon on Bon! Picking on girls now?" Rin rolled his eyes, hopping down from his post to help you out. 

"Bon, cool it!" The members of Ryugi's group both moved to pry the split-haired boy off of you, an effort that wasn't guaranteed to pay off seeing as how he was the largest of the trio. 

"Please, stop fighting!" The blonde girl ontop of the fountain spoke up for the first time the whole interaction. 

Bon let go of your shirt at that, sighing before allowing his face to scrunch up in annoyance. "You losers aren't even worth it! I'm outta here!"

Rin was quick to lock his arms underneath your own, preventing you from running after to pummel Sugaro's face in. Once the three-man crew was far enough away, the demon boy let go, allowing you to brush yourself off immediately afterwards. You knelt down once more, picking the ball up from where it'd dropped during the altercation. 

"And good riddance!" You huffed, holding your chin up high. You weren't expecting to be whacked on the head not a second later. "Ow! Hey, what was that for."

"Mind your own damn business next time! You almost got your ass kicked!" Rin scolded, looking as if he himself was the one you'd picked a fight with.

"As if! I wasn't gonna stand around and let him pick on you! Besides, I could take that rooster-brain any day!" You objected, turning your nose away from the boy. The halfling promptly gave you another smack to the head. "Ow! Hey, stop doing that!"

"Don't worry about me, I can take care of myself..." Rin pinched the bridge of his nose. Oh geez. Now he was turning into Yukio. "But...thanks. That guy's a jerk. The old me would've jumped to fight him in an instant."

"Well if the 'old you' ever comes back, let him know I've got baseball practice on Wednesdays, just in case he plans to fight that guy for real." You snorted, rolling your eyes playfully. 

"I'm sure he'll appreciate the offer." Rin sarcastically joked in return, prompting another laugh from you. 

"Ya know what? Maybe your not so bad afterall, Chicken." You placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, ignoring his protest not to be called that, before turning to the cute blonde girl who'd seemed to go quiet once again. "Hey, you holding up okay?"

"M-me?" The girl seemed surprised you'd addressed her, probably not being social with kids her own age too often. She was clearly shy, especially if the red hue staining her cheeks from that interaction alone. "Oh yes! I'm fine! You don't have to worry about me!"

"Hmm. You're that girl who lives in the house across the bridge, right?" You stated, knowing she'd seemed familiar from somewhere. You didn't know many people in the first place, so it was pretty difficult for you to forget a face.

The girl nodded, face still a light shade of cherry. "Y-yeah! My name is Shiemi Moriyama! It's very nice to meet you!" 

The bow she introduced herself with was a bit dramatic, but nonetheless you returned it. "I'm (Y/n) Faust, it's nice to meet you too."

After the two of you straightened up, you were quick to offer her a hand off of the fountain.

"Hey, you don't live too far from me. Let me walk you home." You hummed, figuring it'd be alright to have company for once. She didn't seem too bad and you also didn't want those boys ganging up on her if she ran into them.

"Ah! R-really?" Shiemi seemed surprised at the offer. The two of you'd just met and you were offering to go out of your way for her. "Don't you live in the dorms though?"

"Nah," You shook your head in response. "I live with my old man in the house on the hill."

You gestured to where Mephisto Manor loomed above your group. Shiemi looked up, her expression giving away her sense of awe.

"But, isn't that where the director lives..?" The blonde eventually asked, confusion showing clear on her face. Then, suddenly, she understood. "Ah! So you're the daughter of Sir Phe-!"

"Yup! She's Mr. Faust's daughter!" Rin interrupted quickly, throwing an arm around you shoulder. He quickly thrust both of his hands over your ears, mumbling to Shiemi through his teeth. "Ixnay on the amschoolcray!"

The gardener blinked for a moment before nodding softly in understanding. "Oh...okay..."

Your brow twitched in the meanwhile. It didn't take you too long at all to grow tired of being manhandled. Thrusting your head back, your skull made contact with Rin's chin in the moments following. A loud smack resounded in turn. 

"OUCH! WHAT THE HELL!?" Rin stumbled back, rubbing his reddening skin. If he was any normal person, he'd be sure to develop a nasty bruise sometime after, however, thanks to his unique heritage, it went from a light purple to completely healed in no time. 

"I should be saying the same to you! Don't you know how to handle a lady?" You crossed your arms, using a hand to fondle the bump now forming on your head. 

"You're no lady! Who're you tryina fool?" Rin was quick to object.

"Puh-lease, you wouldn't know a lady if one hit you in the face! Oh wait. I did!" You scoffed, turning back towards Shiemi. "Whatever...come on Moriyama, let's head out before the chicken and I tussle."

"A-Alright..." Shiemi followed you away from the fountain and a still miffed Rin blowing a raspberry at your retreating figure. 

The trek upwards wasn't too eventful. Shiemi was awkwardly quiet and you simply kicked your ball most of the way up. 

"Ya know, it's kinda weird." You spoke up for the first time in about ten minutes. "We grew up right next to each other, but this is our first time actually speaking..."

"Huh?" Shiemi looked to you as she pondered the comment herself for a moment. "Yeah...I guess that is kinda strange..."

"Maybe it just means we've gotta make up for lost time then." You shrugged, approaching the bridge that connected to her home at last. "Why don't we start by using each other's first names?" 

"Make up for...?" The blonde mumbled, looking down at her feet. Her cheeks soon began to heat up as she made her own conclusion. Did this mean you wanted to be friends!? "Y-yeah! That's fine with me!"

Shiemi had no time to think any further as you began to act foolishly for what was probably the tenth time that day. You pointed to the short brick wall right infront of the hill leading to the garden. "Hey, watch this! I bet I can kick it up to that wall there!"

"O-Okay!" Shiemi agreed almost immediately, mostly because, if you did wanna be friends, she didn't want to ruin the opportunity before you even got to know each other, but also because she figured it was harmless. Afterall, the ball couldn't go _that high_ could it? "Go for it!"

"Right!" You wasted no time tossing the ball into the air, jumping nearly in unison and kicking with great force just to make sure it'd reach the end. 

Well, as it turned out, the answer was yes. It could go that high.

The ball flew through the air, hopping right over the fence and into Shiemi's precious garden. Whoops! You must've kicked harder than you thought. 

The pair of you flinched as a loud crash was heard, signaling you both to start running towards the source. Maybe it was because of the specific situation at hand, but you had to say, for someone in a heavy yukata, Shiemi could run pretty fast. Not as fast as you, but still, you had to appreciate the hustle. If she wasn't involved in the cram school, you'd've recommended her to the track team in your free time. 

Throwing open the garden gate, the two of you rushed inside to inspect the damage. It didn't take you long to find it; a shattered pot with your now flattened ball amongst the shards. 

"I...am so sorry." You bowed deeply in apology. "I'll buy you a new one, I promise."

Shiemi gave a sigh of relief. "Oh, don't worry about it. It was just an empty pot, so there's no harm done." 

"Let me help you pick up the broken pot at least." You knelt down onto your knees and began to collect the bits. Shiemi soon joined you with a trash bag for you to chuck the broken pieces into to throw out when you were done.

The two of you gathered the pot's pieces in silence, giving you plenty of time to think to yourself. This place was really beautiful. You were very glad your recklessness didn't ruin it; if that'd been the case you would've never forgiven yourself.

Glancing next to you, you admired the plant growing to your immediate left. It was a bush of beautiful blooming pink flowers, planted in moist soil. 

"Hey Shiemi," You called. The other girl gave a hum of acknowledgement as you gestured to the plant. "What are these called?"

"Those?" The blonde's eyes lit up, her passion for botany quickly overcoming her shy nature. "They're called-"

_"-paeonia." A voice from above your small, kneeling figure answered as you leaned to get a good whiff of the plant._

_"I see..." You hummed, smiling at the flowers as if they were grinning back at you in return. "Do these ones have a special meaning like the others?"_

_"Yeah. They mean 'happy marriage' or something like that in your culture." The voice replied once again, sounding pretty uninterested, but answering nonetheless._

_Your face scrunched in confusion, you turned to look up at the voice's source, but the beaming sun made it hard to get a good look at their face. "Marriage? What's that?"_

_"It's when two adults make a vow to belong to each other forever and then start to live together. It's not really a concept people like me or your 'Papa' practice often." Whoever the person speaking to you was backed up a bit and sat crisscross on the armrest of a nearby bench. The display of balance would've impressed any normal people around, but it seemed to be just the two of you at the moment._

_"Forever...?" Your face relaxed into one of a more gentle confusion, this topic now becoming more thought-provoking than anything. "Why would they wanna do that?"_

_"Because of 'love' or so I hear." The voice was now a bit muffled for some reason, as if they'd put something in or around their mouth._

_"Oh I see..." You nodded in understanding before looking down at the ground below you._

_Did that mean you should marry Papa? Hmm, but you already live with him, so you could just stay with him forever anyway. Who's someone you'd wanna be with for the rest of forever..?_

_Oh! That was easy!_

_Your head shot up to the figure looking down upon you in turn. "Will you marry me Mai-mo?"_

_"Well, you are more interesting than any of the potential brides Father has presented me..." The other went silent for a moment as if thinking. After a minute or two of deep contemplation, they nodded. "Alright. When you get older, I'll make you my wife."_

_A large grin spread upon your tiny face so wide you felt as if the skin of your lips might crack. "Yay! I'll get older and then we can get married in the garden of Amahara!"_

"Um, Miss (Y/n)...?" You were snapped out of your thoughts by the voice of Shiemi. A worried expression painted her face and you soon felt your cheeks heat up in response. Man, you knew you could be a ditz, but did you really just space out like that? "Are you alright?"

"Oh! Yeah! Sorry!" You rubbed the back of your neck sheepishly, face still a little pink. "This place is just so peaceful, I kinda zoned out."

"I understand." Shiemi smiled, visibly pleased by your response. You could almost physically feel your friendship level meter grow a bit in that moment. "I'm really glad you like it here!" 

"Me too." You nodded placing your hands gently into your lap. You looked back to the plant that had instigated the daydream in the first place. "These...are called paeonia, right?"

Shiemi seemed a little taken aback. By what exactly, you were unsure. "Uh, yeah, but people more often call them peonies..."

"Rad." That was your only reply before continuing to pick up shards.

Later on, you laid in bed, thinking about your experience in the garden. What was that? A memory? And who was that person with you? Surely it wasn't your father or Belial...

You'd have to ask them both in the morning. Maybe. Or maybe not. You'd decide when the time came. 

You fell asleep ontop of your covers to these thoughts, dreaming of this mysterious stranger and meeting them wherever Amahara was.


	4. Oatmeal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Okumuras' chef starts to boycott. Luckily for them, you learned to cook from the best!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mephisto was not supposed to have such a large presence in this fic, I swear lmao. Somehow he's just managed to charm himself into a large portion of each chapter.
> 
> This chapter unfortunately had to be split into two because it was getting so long. When will I learn to stop writing so much?
> 
> Thank you so much for the kudos! Feel free to put any suggestions down in the comments! I have the story planned out, but if there's anything specific you wanna see, let me know ^^

"My, my, this is a predicament..." Mephisto sighed, rubbing two fingers to his temple. He was sitting at the kitchen table, leaning casually in his chair when you found him after having woken early from a bad dream.

"What's wrong, Papa..?" You yawned, trudging into the room still clad in your sleepwear. 

"Oh, it's nothing for you to worry about, my little _cat sídhe_." The man answered, sending a tired smile your way. He was always coming up with such weird nicknames for you, so you hardly questioned his vocabulary at this point. "It's just that the chef I had hired for the Okumura brothers is currently on strike, so it is now up to me to take care of them until he feels like working again."

"You mean like...cook for them?" You rubbed your right eye sleepily with the back of your wrist. An idea came to you in that moment, perking you up and out of your drowsy demeanor. "Hey, you've been working really hard lately. Why not let me handle it?"

"Huh? Let you handle it?" Mephisto's eyes widened a bit, somewhat surprised by your offer. After a moment though, he quickly relaxed once more, waving the notion away. "No, no, I wouldn't want to burden you with such small trifles."

"It wouldn't be a burden! I don't want you to overwork yourself!" You shook your head, now more determined than ever.

"Hmm...Alright." Mephisto finally agreed, watching as you grinned in response.

Hours later, the two of you were walking down the mountain together, headed straight for the abandoned boys' dormitory.

"I told you, you should've stayed home and relaxed." You hummed, enjoying the feel of the cool morning breeze against your skin. Dawn was a beautiful time of day despite the fact that normally you would be snuggled deeply into your blankets, attempting to fall back asleep on your regular schedule. "I wanted to give you a break, after all."

"And leave my little girl alone with two hooligans? Never!" Mephisto huffed, thrusting open the dormitory's main door and leading you inside. You followed, keeping a steady pace behind the man while taking a quick glance around. It was awfully plain for your taste, but, to be fair, that might've just been because you were so used to your father's...unique taste in design. Nevertheless you'd suddenly gained a new appreciation for the manor's gaudy decor. 

The twins were clearly on the other side of the building, not a sound echoing throughout the floor you were on save for the soft _squeak_ s of your sneakers and the trill _click_ s of your father's heeled boots. 

Entering the kitchen, you set to work, rolling up your sleeves and tying an apron to cover your clothing. As much as you tried to discourage Mephisto from following suit, the man was clearly set on helping for one reason or another.

"Now! What to make!" You shuffled through whatever food was stocked into the Okumura's cabinets in search for a decent meal to cook. "Oatmeal, maybe?"

"A brilliant idea!" Mephisto praised, already having a ton of vegetables spread out on the counter before him. You guessed he must've raided the fridge for them while your back was turned. 

Shrugging it off, you picked up a nearby pot. "I'll start boiling the water!" 

Ten minutes later, and the quiet tune you were humming while assisting your father chop a few veggies was interrupted by a certain pair of teenage boys sprinting up to the kitchen counter.

"Gentlemen, morning." The purple haired director turned to greet the twins, momentarily pausing his job of chopping up some sort of radish or something. You honestly weren't sure what it was to tell the truth. 

"You!?" Rin exclaimed, eyes nearly buldging out of his head.

"All this time it was you?" Yukio seemed almost equally as surprised as his brother. "You're the one who's been cooking all our meals for us since we moved in?"

"I've been doing no such thing. I'm just a temporary replacement." The demon king hummed, correcting the boys' theory before it went wild. 

"A replacement?" Two voices chimed in unison.

" _Temporary_ replacement. The one in charge of your meals is Ukobach." Mephisto replied with a knowing wink. 

"Ukobach?" Rin still sounded confused. 

"I know that name..." Yukio trailed off before mumbling something you couldn't quite hear to his brother. Well, whatever he'd said, it seemed to please your father.

"A splendid answer!" Mephisto was quick to point his knife in Yukio's direction. His arms then crossed as he continued. "Up until now, he has been loyally carrying out his duties in service of me. Yesterday though, the two of you had apparently trespassed on his territory: the kitchen."

"Now Mister Ukobach is boycotting his job. Nice going, Chicken." You spoke up from behind the other side of the kitchen island, popping out from behind Mephisto for the first time during the conversation. 

Your sudden presence apparently surprised Rin from what you could make out of his shocked expression. The half-demon stumbled back a bit into a defensive pose. "You!? Why're you here!?"

"I'm glad you asked, Mister Okumura." Your father hummed, ushering the boys to take a seat at a nearby table. You picked up the finished product of your efforts on a tray, carefully following behind. "Seeing as Ukobach was my responsibility, it is now my duty to prepare your meals until he returns to work."

You placed two bowls of red, boiling liquid in front of each twin respectively. 

"My lovely daughter here offered to assist in this morning's breakfast." Mephisto smiled, placing a hand onto your shoulder. "We both made it with lots of love, so be sure to finish the bowl!"

"Um, if you don't mind me asking, what exactly _is_ it?" Yukio asked, observing the mixture with caution. 

"It's oatmeal. Duh." You raised a brow in response. Had these guys seriously never heard of oatmeal before? "It's my dad's special! Go ahead and try some!" 

"Go on, don't be shy!" Mephisto added in, pressuring the boys to partake in the meal.

After a moment of silence, Rin finally took the bait.

"Here it goes!" The madman chugged the bowl, immediately regretting the decision afterwards. His face turned bright red before his body collapsed, Yukio only managing to catch him at the last second. 

"Rin, are you okay!?"

"You guys are just being babies." You mumbled between a pout. You looked to the door just so you wouldn't have to view the scene before you.

"I hear grandma calling me..."

"Grandma? We never met our grandma! Whoever she is, don't follow her into the light!"

You looked down to your feet in response to the display. _Was it really that bad?_ You'd thought you'd followed your father's instructions perfectly...

"Now, now, my dear. I'm sure Mister Okumura is simply over reacting." Mephisto picked up a nearby spoon, passing it to you soon after. He gestured to Yukio's bowl. "Why don't you try some yourself just to be sure, hmm?"

"No! (Y/n)!" Rin gasped out, reaching towards you in a weak attempt to stop you. 

Hesitantly, you scooped up a spoonful and brought it to your lips. Opening your mouth, you slurped it clean. Both boys in front of you shivered in anticipation, just waiting for you to blow chunks or _something_.

"Mmmm!" You hummed in a pleased manner. Turning to your father, you grinned. "You really outdid yourself this time, Papa!"

Both Okumuras were frozen, shocked into stone at how you were actually _enjoying_ this demonic meal.

"Thank you, thank you, but I must accredit this success to my wonderful assistant!" The director took a deep bow as if finishing a performance. 

You giggled, suddenly feeling much better about the situation.

"You...actually like this stuff?" Rin asked hesitantly.

"Of course!" You nodded. "Papa used to make this for me all the time when I was little!"

"It's a mystery how you ever survived childhood..." Yukio muttered with a sigh.

Mephisto cleared his throat in order to get the room's attention once more.

"As I said before: seeing as Ukobach is my responsibility, I'll be preparing all of your meals until he decides to return to his duties." The man grinned deviously towards the twins.

"What if he doesn't return..." Yukio asked in a wavering voice.

"I will become your personal cook for the duration of your time here!" Your father decreed.

"I'll help out too! I'll kick your ass if you start overworking him!" You threatened, glaring at a specific Okumura brother.

"Not if I kick this Ukobach guy's ass first..." Rin replied before promptly passing out into Yukio's arms. 

"Idiot. You will not kick the chef." Yukio muttered, glaring at his twin.

You left soon after the exchange, heading to an emergency sports meet closer to the main building.

The next day, things were different. You woke up early that morning to go cook the Okumura's breakfast, only to be stopped by your father.

"No more of that anymore, my dear." The director pat your head, passing you your bento for the day. "Ukobach has returned to his post, so neither of us need worry about cooking for those boys anymore."

"Huh?" You blinked up at the man. "You're tellin' me that chicken actually apologized...?"

"You _could_ say that." Your father's gaze shifted, glancing in another direction. "More like the two came to an understanding."

"An understanding, huh?" You brought your thumb to your mouth, subconsciously nibbling on the nail there. A quirk for when you're deep in thought about something that you'd picked up when you were little and never quite broke the habit of. You thought about Rin and what kind of person he had to be if this Ukobach guy could go from hating his guts to reaching an understanding with him over the span of two days...

Mephisto's soft smile fell into a frown of disapproval. " _Pumpkin_..."

"Huh?" You looked up before suddenly realizing what you were doing. "Oh. Sorry."

The purple man simply sighed before starting to usher you out of the door. "Just get going. You'll be late to class if you continue to dawdle here, you know."

A little saddened by the sound of disappointment in your father's voice, you simply nodded before heading out for the day. 

It wasn't until around lunchtime that you ran into Rin again.

Well, actually, it was Yukio you spotted first. He was relaxing on a bench, surrounded by some pretty girls you recognized from your class, but couldn't quite remember the names of. It wasn't too long after that that you'd spotted Rin, alone behind a nearby tree.

"What's up Okumura?" You asked, strolling right up to the younger twin.

"Oh, it's you Miss Faust..." Yukio relaxed a bit when you approached. He'd probably thought you were another fangirl there to harass him. 

"I see you didn't need me to make you lunch today; guess that means Mister Ukobach is ready to do his job again!" You smiled, gesturing down to the boxed lunch sitting on the boy's lap. Unknowingly, you'd gained three hateful glares in your direction. 

"Though Ukobach is fine now, it was actually my brother who made this." Yukio shook his head and clarified, looking over to where his twin stood by the tree. It was obvious he was trying to be discreet, but that honestly was impossible seeing as the older Okumura was doing almost nothing to hide himself, listening in with a smug look on his face.

"Is that your brother..?" One of the girls asked, unimpressed by the sound of her tone. 

"How could a creep like that know anything about cooking?" Another girl chimed in.

Judging by the expression on Rin's face, she'd clearly wounded his pride and it was then that you remembered that morning.

_"An understanding, huh?"_

"Hey!" You were surprisingly quick to jump to Rin's defense. The four students in front of you nearly jumped at your shout. "Rin may be a little strange, but I'm sure he worked really hard making this lunch! If you're not gonna appreciate it, I will!" 

You snatched the lunchbox from Yukio, quickly shoveling the food contained there into your mouth before anyone could stop you. You managed to finish the whole thing in less than a minute, guaranteeing you'd get a stomach ache later. Shoving the now-empty bento back into Yukio's hands, you headed in Rin's direction.

Ignoring the look of surprise on his face, you bowed respectfully. "Thank you for the meal. It was delicious."

Rin was stunned into silence, only speaking up after a moment or two. His cheeks reddened as he made it a point to look in another direction. "I-I'm glad ya liked it, but next time just ask for your own instead of taking my bro's, okay?"

You straightened out before giving a firm nod in response. 

"Yo! Faust! Coach is calling for a lunchtime practice, so head to the gym!" A member of your basketball team suddenly waved you over.

"I'm comin'!" You hurried their way, following them and leaving the poor Okumura alone.

Rin's gaze stuck onto your form as you left, still amazed at what'd just happened. You just kept managing to surprise him...

Wait a minute. Had you used his real name for once? A smug grin made it's way onto the half-demon's face amongst the rosey red skin. Perhaps this _was_ the start of his "stud phase" after all.


	5. Cake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poor Belial has a heart attack thanks to a question you ask, leaving Mephisto none-too pleased with him...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeey, sorry it's been a hot minute. Quarantine's made it hard for me to find the time to write ^^*
> 
> I finished this chapter tho, and it's fairly lengthy, so hopefully this'll make up for it.  
> Next update should come sooner.
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

"HAHAHAHA!" You snickered at the pouty expression painted on Rin's face, clearly amused at his predicament.

"Shut up already! You've been laughing for, like ten minutes now!" The half-demon glared, gritting his teeth in annoyance. "So what if I got detention? It ain't _that_ funny!"

"Maybe not..." You agreed, finally settling down and a stray tear from your eye. Unfortunately the grin on your face didn't seem to soothe Rin's anger one bit. "But the fact that you're stuck there after a lover's quarrel with our good friend _Bon-Bon_ , now that is funny." 

Rin simply grumbled under his breath in response, his cheeks reddening as he began to hasten his pace in hopes that you wouldn't be able to keep up. 

Of course you noticed and immediately followed suit. "Hey! Wait up! C'mon, where's your sense of humor?"

After volleyball practice that day, you'd ran into Rin heading home from cram school. You'd decided to accompany him back, especially since it meant you'd get home later, meaning you wouldn't have to do your homework as soon, which is when he somehow wound up spilling the beans about getting into a fight with that Bon guy not too long ago. 

Suddenly, you spotted something out of the corner of your eye. You lightly grasped Rin's shoulder before pointing to a group of girls not too far away. "Hey, isn't that Shiemi?"

"Huh?" The demonic boy shook out of his grumpy state, his eyesight following your finger. "Oh, it is. And it looks like she's with Paku and Eyebrows."

" _Eyebrows_?" You raised a brow of your own in response. Looks like you weren't the only one giving people odd nicknames.

"You'll see." Rin merely waved off your skepticism, heading over to meet the girls where your respective paths crossed. You followed silently as he called out to them. "Hey, Shiemi, Paku, Poke-Brows!"

The lead girl of the entourage grit her teeth, face twitching in response. Ah, that was probably 'Eyebrows.' Like the name suggested, her eyebrows were shaped a lot differently than the rest of the groups'. "Don't call me 'Poke-Brows!' You're the reason we've all got detention tonight!" 

You snorted, ignoring the small glare you received from Rin in return. You then looked to Shiemi, noting the large bag she was carrying using both of her small hands. "Hey, Shiemi, lemme help you carry that." 

"N-no, it's oka-" Before she could finish, you'd already grabbed the bag by its handles and lugged it over your shoulder.

Noting the bag's fairly heavy weight, you jostled it a little as if trying to figure out what was inside. "Geez, what are you carrying in here, Shiemi? Rocks?"

"Hey! Be careful with my bag!" Poke-Brows hissed at you, diverting her attention from Rin to sneer in your direction.

" _Your_ bag?" You placed a hand on your hip, visibly confused. "If its your bag, why is Shiemi the one carrying it?"

"N-none of your business!" The purple haired witch glared.

"H-hey, there's no need to fight." Shiemi intervened, not wanting to see the two of you argue, especially if it was over her. "I really don't mind helping her carry it since we're friends and all."

"Oh?" You shut your eyes for the shortest moment to think. They opened again the moment you'd come to a conclusion on your current train of thought. "I see..."

Both girls looked a little worried at the short reply. 

"Alright then, since your such good friends and all, surely _Eyebrows_ here understands how tired you must be from carrying both of your bags all this way..." You trailed off in an ominous tone. You then promptly let go of the bag right in front of Izumo, leaving the purple-haired bully to scramble until she caught it mid-air. 

"H-hey!"

Ignoring eyebrow girl's protests, you turned your back to the group, beginning your lengthy ascent to Mephisto Manor. "Have fun in detention, Chicken! Make sure Shiemi doesn't get into any more trouble!" 

You continued walking away from your peers ignoring their reactions including Izumo's harsh glares and the red tinge covering Shiemi's cheeks.

A few hours later, you found yourself standing at the entrance of your father's study. It wasn't super often that he summoned you there; it was essentially a room of things you weren't allowed to touch where he did work you weren't allowed to look at, so when Belial had escorted you to the familiar door's entrance the moment you got home, you'd almost thought it was some sort of joke. Belial never joked though, so the theory was banished from your mind practically instantly. You knocked on the door, rapping your knuckles against the wood in a way that echoed throughout the empty hall you were standing in. "Papa? You in there?"

"Yes, my dear, come in!" As soon as he gave the 'ok' you pushed open the door and entered the room, being sure to shut it behind you on your way in. The man who'd raised you sat behind his large desk, offering you his usual smile. "I know this is sudden, but I was hoping you could help me out with something."

"Ah, so you want me to run another errand for you?" You rolled your eyes. That made sense. If you had to guess, you'd figure that he wanted you to go pick up something from a teacher or pick up a package from the post office. You honestly didn't know why he didn't just send Belial to do all this mundane stuff, but you supposed even butlers needed a break every now and then. 

"No, no, nothing of the sort, my little _cat sídhe_." The purple-haired headmaster shook his head, gesturing for you to come closer. Once you'd moved a bit nearer to the man, he stood up from his seat. "You see, your friends in the cram school are taking an important test tonight. I figured I would reward them for their efforts with something they'd like and that is where you come in."

That was certainly a first. He'd never asked you your opinion on anything like this before and, from what you understood, he hadn't done anything similar for past cram school classes either, so this was completely out of left-field. It was all very suspicious. You loved your father, but he could be a really sketchy dude when he wanted to. 

But, then again, he was usually pretty weird, so maybe you were just thinking too hard about it.

"Is that all?" You hummed, starting to think about the different ways one could reward kids your age. Normally you'd suggest something sports related, but, as you soon found out after a quick game of basketball with Rin one day after school, sports aren't always for everyone; not that he was bad, its just that you'd totally creamed him the entire match. Luckily, there was one thing you know for certain they'd like: food. "Why don't we bake them a cake?"

"A splendid idea! I knew I could count on you." Mephisto agreed with you instantly, almost surprising you with how quickly he'd responded. It was almost as if he knew you were going to say that...Ignoring the odd look on your face, he continued. "Let's get started! I'll have Belial prepare the ingredients."

You simply smiled in return, happy to be sharing the kitchen with your dad again. Those Okumura boys didn't seem to like your cooking much last time, however things'll be different this time around. This cake was going to be delicious; there was no other outcome possible!

You definitely preferred cooking in the manor's kitchen to the one in the old boys' dorm. It was a lot roomier for one thing, and for another, you actually knew where most of the ingredients you needed were. For those you couldn't find, Belial would fetch, taking his place beside the room's entryway in the meantime. 

It didn't take you and your father long to make a mix for the batter, a goopy, purple concoction that would occasionally bubble, dumping it into a pan and tossing it into the oven when you were done. 

"There!" A proud expression crossed your face as the man beside you turned the oven on so the cake could bake. "How long should we leave it in for?"

"It should be alright as long as we keep an eye on it." Mephisto waved off the idea of setting a timer before you could even suggest it.

"If you say so." You shrugged, hopping up on the countertop to sit, despite the disapproval both your father and Belial seemed to hold for the action.

"So, my dear, is there anything new in your life you care to share with your loving father?" Mephisto took a seat across from you, sitting in a chair you hadn't noticed moments prior. He made himself comfortable, throwing you a sly expression as he pretended to brush a stray hair out of his face. "I've noticed that you've started spending an awful lot of time around Rin Okumura nowadays. Are you finally at that age where I need to start worrying about boys, hmm?"

"No, Papa, it's not like that." You shook your head in denial, rolling your eyes at the man's ridiculous suggestion. Your eyes then gleamed a little softer. "We've just...come to an understanding is all. He's not as bad as I thought."

"I see..." Mephisto still didn't seem convinced, unwilling to drop the topic. "If not him, then perhaps there's someone else you've got your eye on..."

You knew he was just pestering to be nosey, but your mind couldn't help but wander to what happened the other day.

"Actually..." You hummed, recalling the strange memory from the garden. 

Your father's eyes widened a bit, his interest now piqued. 

"Belial." You turned to look where the servant was standing from where you were sitting. "Do you remember...promising to marry me?"

A dead silence filled the room. The atmosphere quickly grew more and more tense by the moment, almost causing you to regret saying anything at all.

"Yes, Belial. Do tell..." Mephisto's eyes narrowed dangerously in the direction of the poor, suit-clad man. Your father's aura seemed to radiate in a threatening nature, warning the butler to choose his next words _very_ carefully.

"No, Miss." Belial promptly replied. He was always a very stoic man ever since you were a child, however, despite his expressionless visage, you could somehow tell he was nervous under your father's scrutinizing gaze. "I do not believe that I have ever made you such a promise. Forgive me." 

"That's weird..." You rubbed at your chin as you started to think. If it wasn't Belial, then who? Growing up, the only two people you'd ever seen on a regular basis were your father, Belial, and occasionally a pediatrician, but you sincerely doubted the doctor would've made such a promise to you. 

Wait a second. Weren't you forgetting someone? 

A flash of green suddenly clashed with your vision as a sharp pain struck your brain at that moment. You clutched your forehead with one hand, using the other to tightly grasp the counter you were sitting on. You couldn't help but let out pained groans at the awful sensation.

Wordlessly, Mephisto stood and approached your body, now bent over in pain. He placed a hand on top of your head, stroking your hair in a soothing motion to gently force you to look up at him. Meanwhile, his free arm wrapped around your figure, holding you close to his chest in a firm, yet comforting embrace. 

"Now, now, it's alright _meine kleine Puppe._ " The purple-haired man practically purred into your ear. He continued to gently pet your head, soothing the horrible ache in your brain at least a little. You closed your eyes, focusing on the soft texture of the man's pearly suit against your overheated skin. Your mind went fuzzy. 

This...felt right.

"Pardon the interruption, Master," Belial cleared his throat after what felt like ages. You and your father snapped your heads in the butler's direction in sync, the pain from earlier now completely vanished. After catching your attention, Belial continued. "I believe your cake may be a bit...overdone."

"Oh no!" Mephisto rushed to the oven, completely throwing off your balance. The man swiftly yanked out a colorful hunk of burnt goop from the oven, placing it on top of the stove with a sad whine. 

"Let's just get monja..." You muttered from where you were collapsed face first on the floor. 

That's how you ended up joining the cram-school kids for monja. You sat in between Rin and Shiemi, cooking your food with a bright look in your eyes. You hardly noticed the grumpy stares coming from Bon and Izumo a few seats down.

"Okay, who invited baseball-for-brains here?" The purple haired girl spoke up, complaining about your presence as if it inconvenienced her in any sort of manner. "I thought this was some sort of treat for finishing the exwire exams, not some goofy get-together."

Rin slapped his hands over your ears the moment Izumo began voicing the word 'exwire.' He whispered harshly in the direction of his peer. "Eyebrows, ix-nay on the exorcist talk!"

You quickly swatted the boy's hands away, turning to glare at him in response. "Hey! What was that for!?"

"Hehe, sorry, just saw some bugs flyin' around your hair, that's all. Looks like I shooed them away though!" The ravenette rubbed the back of his neck, a sheepish grin on his face. You were't buying it. That expression had 'suspicious' written all over it. You opened your mouth to voice this, but were quickly interrupted.

"Yo, lovebirds! Could ya find somewhere else to flirt? The rest of us are here too ya know." Suguro rolled his eyes, slurping up some grub unceremoniously. Both you and Rin's faces light up a bright red.

"WE'RE NOT LOVEBIRDS!" The two of you shout in harmony.

"First she's secretly engaged, next she's having an affair with a total ruffian-" Mephisto sobbed from his seat at the head of the table, ignoring the way his tears sizzled on to stovetop below as they fell. "What's happened to my little girl!?"

"You cut that out!" You shouted, flinging the cushion of you seat at the man.

"Hold up. Engaged..?" Rin raised a brow, causing your attention to turn towards him. 

You simply shook your head in response. "I'll...tell you later."

"HAHAHAHA!" Days later, Rin snickered at the pouty expression painted on your face, clearly amused by your story. 

"Oh, shut up! It's not _that_ funny!" You grumbled, crossing your arms in front of your chest as you pouted. The pair of you were walking back to Rin's dorm from the store where you'd both bought a bag full of popsicles to hopefully stave off the immense heatwave rolling over the city that day. You'd taken this as the opportunity to tell the boy about your memory and, subsequently, the chat you'd had with your father and Belial.

"It's pretty funny. Mephisto must've been pissed." Rin hummed, taking a bite out of the popsicle in his mouth with his bare teeth. You shivered at the sight.

"You're a monster. I can't believe you bit into a fucking _chunk of ice_." You shook your head in disapproval, unwrapping one of the treats from the shopping bag for yourself and eating it the proper way.

You ignored any attempts to bring up the subject again for the rest of the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next is the beach episode. I'm excited ngl 👀👀👀


	6. Sellin' Squid by the Sea Shore

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and the cram school kids hit the beach! You also find out you have a natural talent as a salesperson. Huh, maybe you should go into business.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, as much as I hate it, this chapter was starting to get LOOONNNG af, so, I had to split it into two u-u
> 
> This chapter is kinda heavy on shipping with Rin towards the end especially, but I promise there will be plenty of other ships coming and a surprise possibly next chapter 👀👀👀
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Summertime!" Rin rushed off of the bus dropping you off at your sunny destination. "The ocean!"

"The bikinis!" Shima hopped out after, equally excited.

"The volleyball!" You were third to get out, shoving Shima out of the doorway to exit sooner. He didn't seem to mind too much as the three of you threw your arms up into the air with Izumo tailing behind at her own pace, clearly less enthused than the rest of you.

"Woohoo!" You and Rin cheered in synch.

"Let's go hit on chicks!" Shima practically skipped his way across the road. "Time to hit the water Okumura! C'mon Izumo, Faust, go get changed! Swimsuits people: chop chop!"

It was almost kinda cute how excited he was.

"Oh man, I love the oceeeaaaan!"

"Can't believe my old man actually let me tag along with you guys!" You grinned about thirty minutes later, shoving on the long shirt you were using as a coverup for your swimsuit. After hearing about the different trips the cram school students were getting to take over break, you quickly hopped onto the opportunity to beg your father to allow you to go as well. It took a fair bit of convincing on your end, however, eventually you were able to get him to give in. 

Izumo ignored you, stepping out of her changing room stall moments after you. This didn't bother you too much. The two of you had never been on good terms, so you didn't really expect any less from her. 

The only downside to this free trip is that all of you have to work at a teacher's food booth selling grilled squid for half the day. You and Izumo worked the first shift and somehow managed a grand total of two sales, though, considering Izumo's attitude the entire time, you were surprised you even got that. It was Rin and Shima's turn to work now. 

As you got closer to the booth, you could hear the boys' conversation before even seeing them. "...not exactly what you'd call a team player."

"Excuse me?" The purple-haired girl questioned the guys, still looking unamused. Shima's face paled immediately as he hopped up to hopefully cover his slip up. 

"Uh, hi! Geez, you guys sure look cute in your swimsuits!" The pink  
-haired monk rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, probably praying silently that neither of you heard what he was saying just then. You'd bet money he'd been talking about Izumo.

"What's your problem?" Eyebrows glared, turning to look towards the ocean. She started heading off that way, ignoring the exasperated look on Shima's face. "I helped you grill those squids didn't I? Besides, I'm not really the kinda girl who works retail."

"Rin and I'll take first shift tomorrow, so you can check out chicks then, alright?" You waved off the monk's visible disappointment, dropping your beach tote by Rin's feet. There wasn't really anything worth stealing in it, but you trusted the chicken to protect your stuff regardless. He was kind of a gentleman when he wanted to be, not that you'd ever admit it out loud.

"What's with volunteering me all of a sudden?" Rin tried to seem annoyed, but really wasn't. Despite his pout and crossed arms, you could tell he wasn't actually upset.

"Becaaauuusee after our shift tomorrow, we're gonna go have fun." You hummed, letting a soft smile grace your lips. You then leaned in close, whispering into the boy's ear as if telling him a secret. "Besides, you don't really mind do you? If you aren't with me, you'll be stuck with Pinky or Eyebrows and you know Izumo's just gonna ignore you the whole time and Shima's just gonna wanna pick up girls." 

"Sad thing is, I think you're right." Rin sighed. Truthfully, he really would've preferred hanging out with you anyway. The two of you hung out a lot outside of school nowadays, somehow finding time away from cram school and sports practice to walk home, read manga, play games, and/or, as you'd started doing more recently, cook together. Though, by "cook together" you really meant Rin doing all of the cooking while you taste-tested anything he made. He probably spent more time with you now than he did his own twin brother.

"Ohoho, don't worry, I can take a hint." You didn't like the sly expression on Pinky's face when he'd said that. The boy only offered a wink to the two of you, ignoring the cloned looks of confusion you and Okumura were giving him. "I'll be more than happy to give you two _lovebirds_ some alone time."

"PSCHCHCH!" Your face went comically red, mirroring the one belonging to the boy next to you. "That's not what I-" 

"Don't sweat it, you don't gotta explain it to me!" Shima grinned, unaware of the danger he was currently placing himself in. "I know your old man doesn't approve, but you don't have to worry about putting up an act around me!" 

If Rin hadn't preemptively reached over and hooked his arms up underneath yours, Renzo Shima would be a dead man. 

"Good work you all! I am truly blessed to have such wonderful students under my wing." The cram school teacher approached, holding a fan to cool himself off with. You didn't really know the man's name, having only met him this once for the field trip, but you settled down as he approached nonetheless. He looked happy to see the stand up and running. "So, how's business?"

"Not good." Rin shook his head, looking down to all the ungrilled squids still roasting over the flames. "We haven't sold a single one."

"Really?" You blinked, surprised that not even one person had been interested in buying from the booth. "I thought people liked eating seafood by the shore..."

"Well, it's still early in the day, but I'm sure it'll pick up soon." The man laughed nervously, almost as if there was something he wasn't telling you...

Before you could question him, he'd already started scurrying off. 

"Just do the best you can!" With a wave from his free hand, the teacher was gone, leaving you and the two boys at the stand.

"I can't put my finger on it but something about that guy is...weird." You shook your head, kneeling down to rummage through your bag and up your cell to check the time. The phone screen lit up as a picture from the last festival you'd attended with your father just a few months ago presented the time on your lock screen. The two of you stood side-by-side in matching yukata while fireworks went off in the background, looking happy just to be in each other's company. You held up your phone screen, showing the boys the time displayed. " _'Early in the day?'_ It's almost time for supper."

"Eh, who knows? He's a weird guy." Shima shrugged, not seeming too bothered by the man's actions. He did, however, seem interested in your phone screen. "Ya know, you don't really look a whole lot like your old man..."

"Huh?" You flipped the phone around, taking a good look at the photo yourself. The physical differences between you and your father were pretty clear. From ear shape to facial structure, the two of you looked vastly different. Most people probably wouldn't assume the two of you were even related if they saw you around town. This wasn't a big surprise to you, but you'd be lying if you said it didn't bother you a little. "Oh, that's cuz I'm adopted." 

"Really?" Shima looked a bit surprised. "He doesn't seem like the type to me, but good for him."

"Why doesn't anyone seem to believe that my dad's actually a pretty nice guy?" You huffed, tossing your phone back into bag and ignoring the deadpanned faces of the boys in front of you.

Suddenly, Okumura's eyes widened and the ravenette pointed behind you. You instinctively turned to look at the ocean. "Oh no! Izumo!"

You could barely see her, but you could tell she was in trouble even from your distance. "Looks like she's got a leg cramp!"

"We've gotta go help her! (Y/n), watch the stand!" Rin thrusted the tongs he'd been using to grill squid into your chest, hopping over the grill like it was nothing and rushing to Izumo's rescue with Shima in tow. 

"H-hey! I'm captain of the swim team with training in CPR! Shouldn't _I_ be the one doing the rescuing!?" You called out to no response. You rolled your eyes, moving to stand behind the grill. From what it looked like, Eyebrows would be just fine; someone was already out there pushing her floatie to shore.

Giving a sigh, you tugged off your coverup, revealing the well-fitted swimsuit you'd been wearing underneath. It was a lot hotter where you were standing, probably from the combined heat of the grill at your front and the unforgiving midday sun beating down above you. Either way, the shirt had to go.

You regretted this decision not two moments later.

"Hey pretty lady. What's a sweet thing like you working in a dump like this?" Some sleazy guy approached your stand, a group of similar looking men standing right behind him and a few beautiful women waiting behind them. From the way this dude looked, you can tell he was some rich, jock-type with more muscles than brains. Not that you had much room to speak when it came to judging people for being wealthy or jocks. 

"Well, right now I'm waiting for you to either order some squid or leave." You answered honestly with your best customer-service smile. You had no clue if you were doing it right, however, it must've been good enough since he seemed a little peeved after that. 

"C'mon, don't be like that babe!" The guy sneered, leaning over the grill just enough to get into your personal space. "Why don't you come hang out with us for a while? I promise it'll be fun~"

Right as you'd opened your mouth to instinctively reject the offer, you caught sight of a nearby volleyball net, a wicked idea coming to your mind. 

"Alright, I'll hang out with you," You hummed, looking rather smug. "Buuut on one condition."

"I knew you'd come around doll!" The sleazebag grinned, legitimately believing his _natural charm_ had won you over. "What is it babe? You want money?"

"Nope! You've gotta beat me in a game of volleyball!" You placed one hand on your hip, using the other to gesture to the nearby net. "You win, and I'll hang out with you."

"You've got a deal!" The guy was quick to agree.

"But! If _I_ win, you have to buy out my entire stock of squid." You finished, a gleam of excitement flashing in your eyes. This was like killing two birds with one stone. You got to play your game and you got to make this jerk look like a total fool.

"You're on!" 

It was a very short game. The guy teamed up with two of his lackeys while you, on the other hand, were completely alone on your side of the court. And yet, you completely annihilated them. It was like time stood still every time you spiked a pitch, you hitting the ball so fast no one could even spot you do it. 

"So, will that be cash or card?" You grinned, placing your sunglasses onto your face as you basked in the glow of your victory. In the end, the creep bought you out, true to his word, and you got to bring back the plentiful earnings to Mister Tsubaki with pride.

"W-what is this..?" Shima's stomach churned at the sight of the food in front of him. It was some mixture in a square pan with bits that were either burnt or undercooked, all of it an odd maroon color he wouldn't typically expect out of his meal. 

"Since you all took so long getting back, I took the liberty of cooking us dinner." You grinned, clearly proud of your skills. You'd been practicing different recipes with Rin for the past few weeks, but tonight, you wanted to try something different. "It's my dad's special casserole!"

"I was planning on simply fixing up the squid that went unsold today, however, Miss Faust here somehow miraculously managed to sell every last one, so I let her decide on the dinner menu." The mutton-chopped man explained, clearly feeling a bit ill from the sight of the dish himself. "Squid is the only thing anyone's been able to catch around here, so I really didn't expect it to be quite so popular."

"What can I say? Guys can't resist a pretty girl in a swimsuit." You snickered, awfully smug at your accomplishment.

"Yeah right, you probably threatened to knock someone's teeth out or sold 'm off in some kinda bet." Rin narrowed his eyes at you suspiciously. Your hand immediately shot to hold your gut, your pride wounded by the surprisingly accurate prediction. 

"Miss Faust, didn't you have something else in the oven? Perhaps you should go check on it, hmm?" The teacher reminded you, ushering you out of the room. 

"Ah, my _spinat-puffs!_ " You rushed to the kitchen, hurrying to rescue your dish before it burned.

A few minutes later, you re-entered the dining area carrying a tray of what seemed to be burnt charcoal. Mr. Tsubaki was gone, but the other three were still sitting around. 

"Huh? Where'd the teach go?" You raised a brow, placing the tray onto the table in the center of the room.

"Went to go answer a booty call. Again." Izumo rolled her eyes, exiting the room without so much as a _goodnight_. 

"Wow, good for him I guess." You blinked, kinda surprised that a man your father entrusted your safety to basically just ditched your group for the second time that day so quickly.

"Yeah, whatever. At least we don't have to work tomorrow." Shima sighed, standing and brushing off dust from his pants. "Says he's hired a 'proper worker' to cover us."

"Yeah, but we've gotta watch some kid instead." Rin added in as Shima gave a shrug.

"Huh, why are we babysitting? I thought this trip was to work for Tsubaki to get extra credit or something." At least, that was the way it sounded when you'd asked the teacher about it. It didn't really make much sense for him to send you to watch some random kid if that was the case, so you were more than a little confused.

"It's his...nephew!" Rin smiled a little too quickly to be genuine. "Yeah! The kid's mom is outta town for business, so he's havin' us keep him outta trouble!"

"Hmm, I _guess_ that's alright..." The change in plans irritated you a bit. Unless the four of you were splitting into shifts, that kid would be taking up your whole schedule, ruining your opportunity to do those things you wanted to do. Letting out a sigh, moved towards the door. "I guess this is goodnight then..." 

"Woah, hold up!" Rin prevented you from leaving, gently grabbing onto your shoulder as he continued. "You seem pretty bummed, what's up with that?" 

"I-" You'd almost started to answer before remembering Shima was still in the room. There was no way on Earth you were making any sort of confession around that guy. Glaring at the teasing expression on Pinky's face you simply shook you head in response to Rin. "Never mind, I'll tell you later. Night."

And with that, you left the room, leaving the two boys alone together.

"What was all that about?" Rin had to admit he was a little worried. You weren't usually one to stay quiet when something was bugging you; it was honestly one of the reasons the half-demon appreciated your company. He didn't have to worry he was secretly being a bother to you and that you were just to polite to say so. 

He could only stare at the door you'd shut behind you, wondering what was on your mind...

"Isn't it obvious?" Oh yeah, Shima was still there. The monk threw one of his arms around Rin's shoulders, wiggling his eyebrows to make a point. "She's bummed she's missing out on having _alone time_ with her sweetheart."

Rin felt his own eyebrow twitch in response. "Bro, how many times do I have to tell you? _We are not 'sweethearts'_."

"Maybe not yet, but tomorrow, that could all change." Renzou hummed, closing his eyes as if he was imagining it.

"What do you mean?" Rin looked to Shima, now thoroughly confused.

"I'm just sayin' maybe she wants to get you alone with her to _confess her feelings for you_." Pinky shrugged, looking awfully smug for whatever reason. 

"Huh? You really think so?" Rin thought about it and couldn't help but let his imagination run wild with the idea.

_"Oh, Rin! I just can't deny it any longer!" You turned to face the half-demon, your back now facing the ocean as the two of you stood on the shore at sunset. The beach was completely empty, leaving the two of you alone together. "You really are the coolest guy I know! I love you!"_

_Rin could only watch in awe as you took both of his hands into your own, leaning upwards slowly with your lips gently puckered._

"DUDE!" Shima's laugher broke Rin out of his fantasy, the demon boy freezing in his current position. His lips had been puckered, even more exaggerated than yours had been in his daydream. Renzou continued laughing, holding his stomach at the force of each giggle. "You totally got into it!"

"OH SHUT UP!" After finally snapping out of it, Rin smacked the back of Shima's head, ready for for his reddening face to cool and the pink-haired boy to cut it out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed! 
> 
> Feel free to let me know if you'd like the chapters to be shorter if this was a little too lengthy lol
> 
> Remember to stay safe!!


	7. Leg Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Rin take a jog. You meet an attractive stranger and pet his dog. Life is good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy the chapter! Most of the notes'll be at the end cuz I don't wanna accidentally spoil lmaoooo
> 
> On another note: I made a discord server! Feel free to join and say hi! It's new so there's not much atm, but I'm planning on giving updates, making polls, and showing off artwork for the fic there ^^ 
> 
> https://discord.gg/aEHWdee
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

You woke up earlier than usual the next morning, careful not to wake Izumo as you stood and dressed. You wore your work-out clothes, tying a pair of well-worn sneakers to your feet before making your way to the room next door as quickly and quietly as possible. The boys were sleeping when you'd entered, which was pretty much what you'd expected since it _was_ the crack of dawn. 

But that didn't stop you from tip-toeing your way over to where Rin was sleeping, stepping over various splayed out limbs, and kneeling down next to his passed-out form. You carefully placed both hands on his shoulders, shaking him in an attempt to rouse him from his slumber. 

"Okumura! Okumura!" You whisper-yelled after a few moments. It was getting increasingly more aggravating to try and wake the boy. Part of you was almost convinced he was dead; seriously who sleeps this heavy? "...Rin?"

Rin's eyes cracked open to see your face centimeters from his own, pretty similarly to his vision just hours before. Oh, so he was still dreaming. That was cool. His eyes slipped closed once again as he prepared to re-enter the land of dreams. 

"Okumura..." You shook your head, ready to give up your efforts. Oh well, you'd just have to talk to him later...

...Or at least you would have if you hadn't slipped on the sleeping boy's arm while trying to stand. 

The moment your backside crashed into his stomach, Rin shot up wide awake, spit shooting up and out of his mouth. You cringed a bit at the sight, not meaning to cause the boy any pain. 

"Oops." You chuckled nervously.

"So, you woke me up at five in the morning...to go jogging with you?" Rin squinted his brows as if still trying to process what you'd just told him. 

Finishing up your stretches, you turned to the boy and nodded. "Mmhm! If we're babysitting today, I'm not gonna be able to work out later and I _never_ skip leg day."

"Why'd ya have to bring me though? Don't you usually work out alone?" Okumura was right; you'd never invited him to jog with you like this before, adding this incident to the list of odd behaviors you'd been enacting the entire trip. 

You simply shrugged, passing him a sweat towel before heading out of the front door. "I don't want any creepy beach dudes to hit on me again."

"Oh, so you want me to pretend to be your boyfriend." Rin deadpanned, following you out. 

"Nope! You're here to keep me from pummeling them if they do." You grinned, beginning your route, leaving Rin to pick up the pace.

About halfway into town, you'd slowed down considerably, allowing you and Rin to simply stroll for a bit.

"So, who was that guy who saved Izumo? Was he a lifeguard or somethin'?" You asked, using a clip to push some hair out of your face. 

"Nah, it was actually that kid we're watching today." Rin answered with a nod.

You snorted. That was pretty funny. The look on her face must've been priceless. You were almost sad you missed it. "Sucks for Izumo. That's gotta be embarrassing."

"Yeah..." Rin nodded in agreement, but didn't really seem like he was actually listening. He looked a little lost in his own thoughts, prompting you to stare at him inquisitively.

"Uh, you okay there Okumura?" You placed a hand on his shoulder, jolting him back into reality.

"Huh? Oh yeah. I was just thinkin'." The half-demon admitted, quickly speaking up again before you could reply with something snarky. "You said some guy at the beach hit on you; what's with that?"

"When you went to go help Pokebrows yesterday, some creep tried to get me to hang with him and his crew." You explained, thinking about your miraculous victory with a soft smile. "I bet 'm in a game of volleyball and won so the sucker had to buy up the whole stand."

"Wow, that rocks. Dude must've been loaded." Rin shoved his hands into his pockets, loosely kicking a rock beneath his shoe. "Sorry I kinda shoved all that work onto you, that wasn't cool of me."

"Nah, don't worry about it. You can make it up to me later by buying me a cone of shaved ice." You grinned, reassuring the boy. 

"Alright, it's a deal." Rin returned the smile with a large one of his own.

You watched as Rin waltzed into a nearby convenience store to get the two of you a bottle of water to keep hydrated. Unfortunately, pooling your current funds together, you only had enough on you for one so you'd have to split, but on a hot day like that, it was better than nothing. 

You stood there for a minute or two before turning towards the beach. Okumura sure seemed to be taking his sweet time. Maybe the cashier was on break? 

Either way, you made the executive decision to hop the railing separating you from the sand, and slid down the dune until you reached the bottom. You'd spotted a small surf shack around the area the other day, maybe you could rent a board and surf later on if that kid's parents showed up early. That'd be pretty fun. It felt like it'd been forever since the last time you'd surfed and you were sure Okumura could use a lesson or two.

Walking up to the shack, your eye immediately focused on the board displayed out front. It was clearly crafted by masterful hands, painted delicately in your favorite color in a pattern of, what you recognized to be, peonies. Huh, just like the ones from the garden...

"Excuse me?" You turned to the person closest to you before you could think too hard on it. "How much is it to rent this board?"

"I don't work here, but, according to the sign, that board's only for sale." The boy pointed lazily to a sign stuck to the back of the board, prompting you to take a look at it. 

"Ah, right. Sorry..." You rubbed the back of your neck sheepishly, feeling a little embarrassed by the ordeal. The boy didn't respond, simply staring at you in a way you were only more flustered by. It was almost as if he was examining you. Was he checking you out?

You had to admit, he was kinda cute. He was lanky, pale skin contrasting the green hair and dark clothes he was sporting, with a permanently uninterested look on his face. He looked like the punk-rock boyfriend you'd bring home if you reaaaally wanted to piss off your father. Hot. 

"Uh, my name's (Y/n)." Birds squawked loudly in the distance as you introduced yourself to the handsome stranger. "Nice to meet you." 

The boy's eyes widened a bit, but only for a moment. He seemed to think to himself for a second or two before finally responding. "My name is Amaimon. I guess I should say it's nice to meet you too."

_'He guesses? That's kinda rude.'_ You deadpanned a bit, but ultimately figured that, if you could get through a conversation with Suguro or Izumo, this should be a piece of cake. You shook it off before offering Amaimon a smile. "You here on vacation with your folks?"

"No, I'm traveling Japan to find something fun." The green guy answered honestly, looking up towards to sky with his hands shoved into his coat pockets. Wait, who wears a jacket like that to the beach?

"Sounds exciting. What exactly are you-" You froze before you could finish the thought. You watched as a small, green head peeked out from behind Amaimon's legs, captivating your attention from then on out. 

Inhaling a deep breath through your mouth, you couldn't control yourself as you instantly launched to kneel down beside Amaimon's feet. The punk didn't seem startled in the least, but watched you with curiosity as he stood his ground.

"Oh my goodness! Your dog is so cute!" You practically shook with excitement, looking up to Amaimon with pleading eyes and ignoring the stares of the shop's exiting patrons. "What's his name? Can I pet him?"

Looking between you and the creature, Amaimon gave a slow nod, gesturing for his pet to reveal itself and come closer to you. You bit your lip in excitement as the...dog waddled it's way towards you, plopping down next to his master obediently. "His name is Behemoth. He's a demon familiar." 

"A what?" Your face scrunched up in confusion as you didn't really understand what he was saying. Regardless, you began petting the little beast, scratching it's head in affection you reserved for all dogs that crossed your path. "Oh! That's the breed, isn't it? That's pretty cool."

Amaimon didn't reply, only watching with mild interest as you interacted with his pet. 

"So, are you planning on learning to surf?" You asked, filling the void of silence with something other than the sounds of enthusiastic belly scratches. 

"Maybe. It looks like it might be fun, but I have to get back to my big brother soon." 

You nodded in understanding, looking back up to the green boy and away from your current task. "Ah, that's a shame. I'd be willing to show you if you had the time."

Standing up and brushing the sand from your legs, you ignored the soft whine from Behemoth in favor of making eye contact with Amaimon. 

"Tell ya what, if you're still around later and I'm done doing work with my group, I'll give you a lesson free of charge!" You grinned, offering the boy your phone to put his number into. 

He took the phone with zero reluctance, passing back your cell when he was finished. "That sounds fun. I accept." 

" _(Y/N)!_ " You turned around at the sound of your name, watching as Okumura sprinted towards you with an unusual amount of speed for being in the sand. "I've been looking for you! What are you doing over here?"

"Huh? Oh sorry. I was just talking with-" You turned around, but Amaimon was nowhere in sight. "Wait, where'd he go?"

"Here, dehydration must be makin' you hallucinate." Okumura passed you an unopened bottle of water with a sigh. It was lukewarm at this point, either something in the store holding him up or him searching for you for so long it was no longer cold. 

You quickly cracked to seal before chugging a good bit. Once you were done, you thrusted the bottle into Rin's arms. "You too. No offense, but you look kinda rough right now. Did something happen at the store?"

"I...don't wanna talk about it." Rin replied looking a little annoyed. Wow, something really must've pissed him off in that shop. 

"Alright, well, I'm here if you feel like talkin'." You shrugged, heading forward in the direction you remembered the teacher's house being in. 

Rin hangs back, looking down at the half-finished bottle you'd given him. When you suggested the two of you'd share, he didn't think you'd make direct lip contact with the bottle. Honestly, the thought of sharing an indirect kiss with you flustered him a little in a way he thought he'd only get with Shiemi. Was it just cuz you were a girl or...?  
Not bothering to continue the train of thought, Rin quickly swallowed what was left of the container, tossing the empty plastic into a bin nearby as he ran to catch up with you.

The two of you parted ways when you reached the house, both changing clothes and getting ready to start working, though you honestly wouldn't be surprised if Okumura had decided to just pass out in his room for a bit. 

You idly scrolled through your list of contacts on your phone as you walked. You figured you'd take a look at the info Amaimon typed in, but paused when you reached Shiemi's info. Part of you was a little surprised the girl even had a phone, but you'd been happy to exchange numbers with her after she stuttered out the request to do so. There was no way you could say no after witnessing something so cute.

Maybe you could video chat her later? You were sure she'd be happy to hear from you and you were kinda curious about what kind of trip the other students went on. 

"Oh, hey Faust!" Shima's voice pulled you up from your phone, focusing your attention on him. He seemed to be in a good mood. "You can chill out for today; Izumo's got the babysitting gig covered!"

"Huh? Really?" What exactly was this guy trying to pull? There's no way _Izumo_ of all people would volunteer to do manual labor. 

Noting your obvious suspicion Renzou continued explaining. "Yeah! She seemed really adamant to do it herself. Probably something to do with the kid saving her life."

You supposed that made sense. "Alright, but it's still kinda weird..." 

"Yeah, but at least we've got the full day to relax now! We can enjoy the ocean!" Shima's grin only grew as he raised a fist in the air in silent victory. "Say, maybe it's time the two of us hang out _alone_ for once~"

Once again, you didn't like what pinky was implying, prompting you to reject the offer immediately. "Sorry, I've got plans."

"Really?" Renzou blinked. You didn't even know you were free today, how could you already be busy? "With who?"

"Oh, uh..." 

Good question. Who did you have plans with anyway?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here's the surprise I mentioned last chapter! I've been thinking about incorporating CYOA elements into the fic from the beginning and figured this'd be as good a time as any to implement them lol
> 
> The next few chapters will be uploaded at the all at once so it'll probably be a hot minute before the next update. I'll put more info on the discord soon lol


	8. Boy Friend {Rin}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You spend the day with Rin, having fun in the sun without noticing the chaos around you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT'S HERE! I'm so sorry this took so long y'all but I wanted to post each of these at the same time 😭
> 
> Rin's definitely took the most time, so it's probably much longer than the others lmao
> 
> There's a bit of German spoken by Reader-chan in there and I'd like to thank my friend Rat for helping me out with that ^^
> 
> I hope it was worth the wait! I don't own Blue Exorcist!!
> 
> Also, TW for sexual harassment in this chapter. You can skip the scenes in the convenience store if you still wanna read the chapter tho.

"Why'd I have to be the one to go in again?" Rin grumbled under his breath, walking into the convenience store to fetch the bottle of water you'd insisted was so important. As soon as he'd asked himself the question, he remembered the game of rock-paper-scissors you'd played and how he'd lost at a clear 2 out of 3. Poor guy.

It didn't take the half-demon long at all to grab a bottle from the store's fridge and start walking up to the counter. 

"Here's your total! Thank you for shopping with us!" The cashier accepted Rin's payment, handing him his change with a smile. Rin offered a nod in acknowledgement before heading towards the entrance. Moving through the aisle, a bag of chips caught his eye. 

"Huh? Isn't that Faust's favorite flavor?" The half-demon picked up the bag, looking it over to make sure it was the right thing. "I wonder if I have enough change..."

 _"Bruh, that girl totally kicked your ass yesterday!"_ Rin's ears twitched, inadvertently eavesdropping on a conversation further down the aisle. _"You still reek of all that squid you had to buy!"_

Huh? Were they talking about...?

 _"Nah, dude. I let her win! There's no way a girl like that could've take on all three of us by herself in a game of volleyball."_ Sounds like they were. That must've been the guy you'd told him about earlier. There was no way what the guy was saying was true and Rin knew it. All of a sudden, the guy speaking started whispering, though not so quiet that the ravenette couldn't hear them. " _Besides, did you see how hot she looked in that skimpy swimsuit? I got the best view every time she scored a point._ "

" _Woah! Really?_ " The other seemed much more interested. 

" _Yeah, dude. I bet she's still around, we'll challenge her to a rematch and you can see juuust what I'm talking about._ " That was enough.

Before he even knew it himself, Rin'd wasted no time grabbing the smug punk's collar, slamming him up against the shelves of the aisle.

"Hey man! What's your problem!?" The first guy's friend shouted, freaked out from the display. 

"My _'problem'_ is how you punks are treating (Y/n) like she's some kinda object!" The half-demon practically flung the guy he was holding up into his friend, not forceful enough to hurt either of them, but enough to make the two fall down. "Leave her alone or I'll kick your ass!"

Both of the boys seemed miffed, yet scared at the same time. "Woah, man, what are you; her boyfriend?"

"Yeah, I am; so don't mess with her!" Rin sneered, watching the two sleezebags scramble to get up and sprint out of the store as quickly as possible. The half-demon huffed, glad he probably wouldn't hear from those two again. Now, he could buy your chips and-

Wait a second...

Did he really just call himself your boyfriend? 

A scarlet blush rose to his cheeks at the realization. Yeah, he did. And it actually felt...really nice.

"Um, excuse me, sir?" Rin was broken out of his trance by the cashier he'd spoken to earlier. She seemed a lot more timid now than she did earlier. "I'm sorry, b-but I'm gonna have to ask you to leave..."

Oh well, at least he got the water.

__________________________________

"Okumura." You finally answered. "He's supposed to make it up to me for ditching the other day."

"Figures it'd be him." Shima sighed, looking a bit disappointed, but only for a moment. He was fairly quick to perk back up again. "You two are pretty close though, so I guess that makes sense."

Huh. You'd never thought about it, but yeah. With as much time as you spent with Rin, you'd guess you were.

"Well, have fun with that! I'll catch up with you two later." Shima waved you goodbye as he went on his way, probably towards the beach to creep on chicks. Ew.

"Seeya." You hummed, waving him off before heading to the boys' room. This time, you didn't bother sneaking in, thrusting the door open without a second thought. "Okumura!"

"GAH! I'm up Yukio, I swear!" Rin shot up from where he'd been resting, actually impressing you with how fast he'd managed to get on his feet. It took him a solid minute to realize that it wasn't, in fact, his brother trying to wake him for class. "Faust? What're you doing here? Again!?"

"We've got the day off. You promised me shaved ice, remember?" You didn't give him any time to object, chucking him a pair of swim trunks from the open bag you'd recognized as his near the door. "It's time to hit the beach!"

Rin stumbled, unprepared for being smacked in the face by a swimsuit, landing on his bum in the process. Why did he agree to this again?

"Wow! _Das schmeckt lecker!_ " You happily munched on your cup of ice, appreciating the cold treat on that hot day.

"That's...good?" Rin was unsure of what you'd said, but you seemed pretty happy. The two of you'd managed to find a shaved ice vendor on your way to the beach, giving you a nice snack on your way to the water.

"Mhmm!" Safe to say, you were content. You plucked up another spoonful, offering it to your raven-haired friend as you walked. "Here, you want some?" 

"Huh? Oh, no thanks." Rin seemed distracted, but you were honestly too focused on your snack to notice. 

Rin, in the meanwhile, had managed to not only spot the jerks from the convenience store yesterday, but noticed that they were headed to the same area the two of you were. You didn't notice since you were so focused on your treat, but Rin's arm found its way around your waist while the young man himself let out a soft rumbling growl without him even realizing it.

"Huh? Is there a cat nearby?" You blinked, hearing the sound and glancing around in curiosity. 

The Okumura coughed, catching himself off-guard. "Uh, m-maybe? Cat's don't like water though, so it's probably nothing."

"Yeah, that makes sense." You nodded, kicking off your sandals into the sand nearby. Your father, who paid a good amount of money for said sandals, would throw a fit if he could've seen it. Ignoring your father's imaginary fit, you turned to Rin with a mischievous grin on your face. "Race ya to the water."

"You're on!" 

And you were off! Both of you sprinted towards the ocean, leaping over several beach towels and sandcastles, much to the beach's other occupants' annoyance. Neither of you seemed to care though. For the first time the entire trip, you and Rin were both having fun together without anyone else being able to interfere.

"I win!" You sprung off a large rock towards the water, canonballing into the ocean to consummate your victory. 

"Yeah, yeah, don't act like you didn't try and trip me on the way!" Rin was only a half step behind you, watching as you did a few backstrokes in the water, probably just to show off. 

"Don't be such a sore loser!" You laughed, splashing him from where he stood on the stone above.

"Hey! That's it!" The half-demon quickly shed the jacket he was wearing as a coverup and followed you into the water, making sure his canonball soaked whatever parts of you that might've possibly been dry. 

From that point, the two of you splashed each other in a brutal war neither of you were willing to lose. You swore you'd had him on the ropes when, all of a sudden, he ducked under the water and you'd lost sight of him. 

"Giving up already, Chicken?" Wow, it'd been a while since you'd used that nickname. You didn't get the chance to think too much on it though, as you were abruptly lifted out of the water and held up over Rin's head as he prepared his final attack. 

"Not this time!" Despite your soon-to-be loss, you were laughing uncontrollably in his arms, making it difficult for the half-demon to sound serious through his own laughter in reaction to yours. Just as he prepared to yeet you with the smallest chunk of his demon strength, he stopped. 

The blue waters flowing towards you were slowly turning an inky black, meaning he'd soon have a job to do.

"Huh?" Your giggles died down as Rin lowered you, now carrying you princess-style. The young man carried you out of the water with haste, worrying you even further. You looked up at him. "What's wrong?"

"I, uh, think I just saw a shark!" Rin turned around, facing you away from the ocean. "I've gotta go warn the lifeguard!"

Good call, but how was he gonna get you away from the beach? 

"Would you mind...heading to the store for me?"

"Sure, but why? Shouldn't I be helping out somehow?" You were very confused and also concerned. Not a great combination in your opinion. 

"You are helping! I just _really_ need-" Rin scrambled to come up with something, _anything_ that would convince you to get out of there as quickly as possible. "...headlight fluid."

The half-demon instantly died a little on the inside. Why? Why did he say that? Everyone knew that stuff was completely fake! There's no way you'd believe him-

"Alright." Or maybe there was. 

You hopped out of Rin's embrace, still not happy and clearly pouting.

"They're not gonna let me in the store like this though." You gestured up and down your dripping wet physique, Rin's eyes shifting away in immediate embarrassment. 

"Just use this then!" The Okumura practically shoved his once-abandoned hoodie over your head and onto your body. "There, now hurry!" 

You didn't get the chance to respond as he ushered you towards the sandals you'd left behind, quickly running off somewhere himself afterwards. You didn't waste any time grabbing your sandals and making your way to the store as you were requested. You weren't happy about it, but Rin seemed pretty adamant about needing this stuff.

You searched aisle after aisle looking for headlight fluid, but never seeming to find any. You only grew increasingly frustrated the more time you spent searching. You'd thought briefly about perhaps simply asking the teen girl working for help, however, you were pretty sure you were gonna snap at the next person to so much as look at you funny and you really didn't wanna put an innocent retail-worker through any more stress than the amount that already came with the job. 

"Hey, baby. You don't have to look any further; all you need is right here." You turned around to see none other than the douchebags who'd been bothering you almost non-stop this whole trip. The jerks instantly flinched at the sight of your face, remembering the beatdown Rin'd nearly given them that morning. "Oh, it's _you_."

"Uh, yeah. It's me." You rolled your eyes, starting to turn back around so you could continue your search when a hand on your shoulder stopped you in your tracks. 

"Woah, slow down there babe!" The main sleezeball looked over your face, seemingly admiring your features. "Ya know, that wimp we ran into here earlier might've _said_ he was your boyfriend, but a thing like you's much too pretty for a guy like that."

"Here earlier...?" It didn't take you long to figure out that they were talking about Okumura. Rin'd said he was your boyfriend? But, why?

"He was pretty rude too; scuffed up my new shoes and everything." The punk huffed before gaining an awfully snarky look on his face. "I think you should offer us a little _compensation_ for the trouble."

"Oh yeah? If by 'compensation' you mean 'knocking your teeth in', then sure." Slapping the hand off of your shoulder, you scowled. "Sounds to me like my _boyfriend_ had the right idea."

You shoved the jerk away from you, making it apparent you weren't playing around. Luckily, that was as far as the altercation went.

"Whatever, tch." The boys, having now officially given up, trudged out of the store, cutting their losses once and for all. 

"All I wanted was to find headlight fluid." You groaned, grabbing a bag of chips in defeat and placing it for the cashier to scan.

"I hate to tell you Miss, but," You looked up at the girl who was pulling the price up for you bag. " _Headlight fluid doesn't exist_."

"..." You silence spoke words.

Rin watched as the giant squid returned to the sea, everything coming together nicely in the end. 

"OKUMURA!" Scratch that.

The half-demon had no time to react, receiving a face-full of designer sandal, yet another inappropriate use of fashion your father would disapprove of. 

"Ow, ow, ow! What's wrong with you?" Rin rubbed his reddened face, thankful that his ability to heal was superior to your ability to chuck a shoe. Not that it wasn't a close race.

"Me? What's wrong with you!?" The Okumura shuddered in response to the heated glare you were giving him. " _'Headlight fluid?'_ Seriously? I should only really be mad that I was stupid enough to fall for that! Why'd you send me off for something that doesn't even exist?"

Rin watched as your face fell into a pout, a much nicer look compared to your angry face. He couldn't tell you the truth of course; Mephisto would absolutely murder him if you came home blabbing about a giant demon squid. But, what could he say...?

"..." Your eyes widened as you came to a realization of your own. When Rin had informed the lifeguard, people had probably panicked and fled the beach. Did Rin send you to the store just so you could get out before all of the chaos started? Was he trying to...protect you? 

Wow, suddenly you felt like a jerk.

Rin stiffened up the moment he felt your arms wrap around him. 

"Thank you, Rin..." You hugged him close, really glad to have someone like him in your life.

Rin could feel his entire body go cherry red as he couldn't help but panic internally. He looked away as he frigidly placed a hand on top of your head to give it a pat. His voice cracked as he tried to come up with something to say. "I...don't know what for, but don't mention it. Seriously."

You pulled away, this time smiling much to Rin's relief. 

"Oh, here's your jacket back." You slid off the hoodie the half-demon had lent you, holding it out for him to take. 

"Ah, thanks." Rin's face had finally began to cool down when he'd looked back at you. He took his hoodie back, moving to slide it over his head when he'd spotted something strange. "Woah, your old man let you get a tattoo? I figured the clown would be they type of dad who'd rather eat his own cape then let you get inked." 

"Huh?" You met Rin's gaze, looking down to the marking on your chest right below your left collarbone. It was a dark-colored pattern very similar to shape of a certain flower, a little smaller than a softball. "You really didn't notice that 'til now?"

"H-hey! Don't blame me for not looking at your boobs! Who do you take me for: Shima?" A mere second after Rin'd said this, you could hear the pink-haired boy shout in protest from about 30 feet away. 

You rolled your eyes, ignoring Shima completely. "Either way, it's not a tattoo; it's a birthmark."

"That's a weird birthmark..." The half-demon squinted as if to examine the mark more closely. You covered your chest in response to the action.

"If you're gonna be like that, gimme back that jacket!"

"What? No way!"

Thus commenced a game of tug-of-war between the two of you that ended in you gaining a new hoodie and Rin gaining a new bruise to the shin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Join the discord if you want! Give feedback, make suggestions, play mudae; it's pretty chill.
> 
> https://discord.gg/B6NutcW


	9. Shell {Shiemi}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You call Shiemi and make her a promise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shiemi's is sadly the shortest u-u
> 
> For the main bulk of the notes, head to Rin's chapter ^^
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"C'mon Moriyama! Pick up the pace!" Suguro shouted at the girl who'd managed to fall behind the rest of the group. 

"I'm hurrying!" Shiemi sprinted to the best of her ability in order to try and catch up. She hated to admit it, but her choice in clothing probably wasn't the best for physical activities.

She really needed to switch to a less formal wardrobe and she knew it. Her only problem was that she had no clue how to wear clothes that weren't traditional attire... What if she accidentally made herself look weird? She'd have no chance at making friends then...

When she'd thought of the word 'friend', you suddenly popped into her mind. You were always really nice to her and you looked super cute in your uniform too! Maybe she could ask you to help her...?

__________________________

"Shiemi." You answered, much to Shima's surprise.

"Moriyama? But, she's not even here!" He seemed more confused than upset. How were you gonna hang out with someone hundreds of miles away?

"That's the beauty of modern technology, my friend." You held up your phone, brushing past Shima to head into your room. 

You quickly changed into your swimsuit, figuring if the call ended too quickly, you could at least go for a swim. 

The beach was a lot less crowded that day, giving you plenty of space to set up a nice towel for you to lay on. When you finally got the chance to relax on top of it, you almost debated falling asleep. It was just so peaceful that day; the sky was sunny, the sand was super soft, and nobody was bugging you for once.

It was a little boring if you were honest.

You pulled out your phone, making sure your appearance wasn't a total wreck, before video-calling Shiemi's number. It rang once, then twice, and then, it went through. 

"(Y/n)!" Shiemi looked excited to see you. You were a bit startled by the enthusiasm, but mostly flattered she'd felt so happy at your call.

"Hey Shiemi!" You grinned, showing off your pearly whites to the girl on the other end. "How's the mountains?"

That's where your father had told you the other group was headed. You'd honestly wanted to tag along with them, but the director was oddly insistent you go to the beach. 

"O-oh," Shiemi looked a little nervous at the question. "It's really fun! The others are just out...getting ice cream at the moment!"

"And they just left you? The nerve!" You huffed, miffed at the thought of anyone treating poor Shiemi so unfairly. "You tell rooster-head he's got a lot worse than a face-full of plastic waiting for him the next time I see him."

"Hehe..." Shiemi gave a nervous laugh in response. Poor Bon. 

The gardener would make it up to him later, but for now, she couldn't let on that the real reason they'd separated was cuz she'd sprained her ankle during their exorcist work. She couldn't ask the whole group to stop just for her, so she'd willingly stayed behind. 

"Oh! (Y/n)!" Shiemi suddenly shouted, startling you almost into dropping your phone. "You look really cute in your swimsuit!"

"Huh? Th-thanks, Shiemi." Your face went a little red at the compliment. You were honestly a little nervous to show it off, but now that you'd received a genuine compliment, you felt a lot better about it. "Papa helped me pick it out. He said I couldn't wear anything too skimpy, but that also couldn't wear anything considered _'last season'_ either."

You'd long accepted the fact that your old man was weird like that. 

"Mr. Faust has good taste." Shiemi admired your swimsuit, only making you more embarrassed. "But, I didn't know you had a tattoo..?"

Tattoo? Oh, she probably meant _that_.

Right below your left collarbone was a dark-colored pattern, strikingly similar to the shape of a certain flower, a little larger than a tennis ball. 

"Ah, it's actually a birthmark." You explained, subconsciously bringing a hand to rest on the mark.

"Oooh." Shiemi nodded in understanding. "Well, it's really pretty!" 

"Thanks!" You were happy she wasn't freaked out or anything. You were honestly a little worried when you'd put on the swimsuit that someone would say something rude. "What's your swimsuit like Shiemi?"

"Huh?" The blonde's face fell a bit at the question, making you a bit regretful you'd even asked. "I've...never been to the beach before, so I don't have one."

"Really?" You were surprised. Looks like you weren't the only one who'd spent most of their childhood indoors. It kinda made you sad you hadn't known Shiemi growing up, even though you'd always lived so close to one another. Looks like you'd have to make up for lost time. "That's okay! Next time, we'll come together!"

"Really...?" Shiemi couldn't help the look of amazement on her face or the stammering in her heart at your proclamation. 

"Really!" You confirmed. "But, that might not be til next summer. How about we spend a day at Mephy Land together before then?"

"I've never been to an amusement park before either!" Poor Shiemi looked as if she were ready to burst into tears. In fact, you weren't so sure she didn't as you watched her bring a sleeve up to wipe her eyes. Sniffling a bit, she spoke again. "I would love to..."

Your face softened as you made an internal vow that this would be the last time you'd ever make Shiemi cry.

"Whatcha got there, Faust?" The pink-haired nuisance was at it again, bugging you on the bus ride home this time.

" _Noneya._ " You pouted, shoving the item you were holding into your pocket. 

"Sheesh, I was just asking." Shima rolled his eyes, sitting down from where he'd been standing over your seat. 

It really wasn't any of his business. You idly thumbed the small pink shell you'd found on the beach earlier from where it was now stored in your pocket.

You just hoped Shiemi would like it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Join the discord if you want! Give feedback, make suggestions, play mudae; it's pretty chill.
> 
> https://discord.gg/B6NutcW


	10. Surf {Amaimon}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You spend the day teaching that Amaimon guy to surf. Why does he seem so familiar...?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For most of the notes, head to Rin's chapter ^^
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!!
> 
> TW: There's some self-inflicted harm in this chapter. It's not purposeful, but I wanted to at least leave a warning just in case!

_"Hey, Mai-mo, can I go visit you where you live sometime?" You asked, looking up at the figure that was still hazy in your memory._

_"Hmm?" It seemed like the figure wasn't paying much attention, but they turned to look at you, so they must've been listening. They paused to think for a moment, but ultimately shook their head. "Nope."_

_"Why not!?" You were honestly shocked. Your face pouted as you readied your foot to start stomping in outrage._

_The figure, clearly not in the mood to deal with a tantrum, picked you up, lifting you from under the arms and bringing you to face level. You still couldn't make out any super-defining details of their face, but, for some reason, you couldn't help but think of your father the harder you tried to make it out. Maybe they looked similar?_

_"The other kings would make fun of you. I don't want you to start crying," Mai-mo, whoever they were, stated. It was sweet until he continued. "It'd be annoying."_

_Your pout relaxed into a more neutral face. "Alright...but that means you've gotta visit me more, okay?"_

__________________________

"Some guy I met on the beach earlier." You finally answered, earning a strange look from Shima.

"A total stranger?" He looked almost as if he wanted to say something negative, but he didn't. He was probably just jealous you weren't hanging with him instead. "Good luck with that."

"I will, thanks." You brushed past him, heading into your room to change into your swimsuit. You thought about taking a nap, but the waves looked pretty nice earlier. You might as well catch them while they lasted. 

It took a while, but you eventually reached the area you'd been earlier, purchasing that surfboard you'd had your eye on, courtesy of your father's card. He probably wouldn't be happy when you brought it home, but he'd forgive you if you got him some kinda weeb-thing before you left. 

"So, you showed up after all." You turned around, spotting the voice now speaking and recognizing him as the guy from earlier. 

"Oh hey! Amaimon, right?" You gave a wave in greeting. "You decide you wanna surf?"

"If you promise it's fun." The green-haired guy nodded in confirmation.

You almost replied, but then you noticed he still hadn't changed into a swimsuit...

"Are you just gonna...wear that?" 

"Mhm." 

Whelp. Weird flex, but okay.

After getting Amaimon a board, and showing him some of the basics, you decided it was finally time to get him into the water.

"Here, just follow my lead." You paddled out on your board, Amaimon keeping a pretty good pace with you. Much to your surprise, when you'd started actually riding, he did even better, keeping steady and not once faltering on the wave. "Hey, that's pretty good!"

"Thank you for the compliment. I should probably tell you that you're doing quite well too." Amaimon seemed pleased, even if his face didn't really show it. "You were right; this _is_ fun!"

"See? I wouldn't steer you wrong." That's when you decided to try tricks a bit more complicated, willing to tempt this incredible 'beginners luck' your student was having. "Here, try this!"

You began performing a few stunts, Amaimon following just fine. Was this really his first time doing any of this?

It was only when you slipped up that the streak ended. 

You took a nosedive, falling off of your board, which usually wouldn't have been an issue, however, during the tumble, you hit you ankle against the hard, wooden surface of your board. Sharp pain shot up your leg from your ankle, making it nearly impossible to swim.

"Is this part of the lesson too?" You couldn't hear him, but Amaimon was wondering why you weren't just getting up again.

" _That person's drowning! Someone save them!_ "

Drowning? That was bad, right? He couldn't risk damaging his bride before their wedding day. 

The demon king jumped into the water, disregarding all the human chatter going on around him. Pulling you up was easy, humans weighed barely anything compared to most demons, so carrying you to shore wasn't hard at all either. 

You weren't exactly unconscious, but you still only really saw things in a blur. You started to come back to your senses at the sensation of an intense _burning_ pain right smack on your chest. You clawed at it, trying your best to scratch it off without success thanks to your short nails. 

Amaimon placed you on the sand, not really sure of what else to do but wait. That's when the burning stopped. 

You coughed a bit before looking up at your savior. "That...wasn't apart of the lesson."

Amaimon didn't respond, his eyes simply traveling down your chest, around the area you'd been scratching. There weren't any physical marks, however, there was something else present in the area. A dark-colored pattern, strikingly similar to the shape of a certain flower, a little smaller than a baseball was imprinted onto your skin, detailed enough for most people to brush it off as a tattoo.

"Ah, it's a birthmark." You explained, leaving it at just that. 

Amaimon didn't reply, simply biting the nail of his thumb instead. He really wanted to say something, however, he knew his big brother would be upset if he said what he really wanted to. 

You stood up, shakily, taking a moment to catch your breath before brushing yourself off. "I...think that's enough surfing for one day. Hope it lived up to your expectations."

"Yes, I'm very glad I decided to stay." Amaimon nodded watching as you grabbed your board that'd washed up on the beach nearby.

"Great! Now, let's get some shaved ice. I hear there's a really good stand nearby." 

And so, you got your shaved ice with Amaimon before parting ways with him. He sure was a weird guy, but you kinda liked that about him. 

Now to find out where in town they might sell weeb shit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish I was super proud of this chapter, but writing Amaimon is a struggle y'all ngl ;w;
> 
> Join the discord if you want! Give feedback, make suggestions, play mudae; it's pretty chill.
> 
> https://discord.gg/B6NutcW


	11. Present

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You join Mephisto for tea and recieve something special from him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope everyone's doing alright! Next chapter's going to be another you-choose kinda thing, but two out of the three are already written so it shouldn't take too long before those are up.
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Welcome home!" You found yourself embraced the moment you walked into the manor. 

"Papa! You're squeezing too tight!" You complained, struggling a bit in your father's hold.

Mephisto's grip loosened as the man moved to hold you at arms length. He looked you up and down, examining you for any marks or bruises. Once he was satisfied, he gave you a soft pat on the head. "It seems Mister Okumura is allowed to live another day yet."

_Elsewhere, Rin sneezed all over the manga he was currently reading. "Damn, must be catchin' a cold..."_

"I'm sure he's grateful." You snorted, rolling your eyes at your father's overprotective nature. 

"I'm sure you must be awfully tired from your trip, _mäuschen_ , but I insist you sit with me for a cup of tea and tell me all about it." Without giving you any time to respond, your father ushered you to drop most of your luggage, leading you into a nearby living room. You'd often use this room in the past when you were a lot younger to learn etiquette and occasionally host playful tea parties, however, it'd been quite a while since you and the headmaster had actually sat down for tea together. He must've really missed you. 

You sat down in the seat he'd pulled out for you, chuckling at the display. After pushing your chair in, he took the seat across from you and, before you knew it, Belial was in the room pouring tea into both of your cups. 

"Now, my dear, tell me all about your first school field trip." Mephisto looked to you eagerly, ignoring the butler entirely.

"Well, the squid-selling was kind of a bummer. I hope Belial knows how to get ink out of a swimsuit." You blew on your tea a little, making sure it wasn't too hot before taking a sip. You immediately winced; apparently blowing hadn't been enough. You tried to hide the pain as you accidentally burnt your tongue, not wanting your father to see you so undignified. You coughed a bit before continuing. "But, it was pretty fun overall."

"Ah, yes; I can only imagine the kind of trouble you must've gotten yourself into during your stay." He sent you a knowing look, causing you to swallow and laugh nervously as you felt the full weight of his gaze. There's no way he could've known about those guys from the beach, your time with Rin, or your run-in with Amaimon. Could he? 

You couldn't help but sweat in your seat, trying not to overthink the odd things your father said, as he continued.

"Perhaps next time I'll join you." The headmaster sipped his tea so casually it probably should've made you even more nervous in hindsight.

Instead, your eyes lit up as an idea came to mind. "Let's go on a vacation then. We'll take a trip; just the two of us!"

Mephisto looked up from his cup of tea, an amused expression overtaking his face. "A vacation, you say? I don't believe I've had one of those in quite some time."

He kept you sitting in silence for a few moments in anticipation, clearly teasing you while he pretended to think on it.

Eventually, he spoke again. "Why not?" 

"Sweet!" You couldn't help but grin from ear to ear, throwing up a fist in victory. It'd been so long since you and your father really spent any time together at all that lasted more than maybe an hour if you were lucky. Not for lack of trying; Mr. Johann Faust was just a really busy guy. 

In your sudden bout of enthusiasm, you managed to accidentally knock over the one bag you'd carried into the room with you, causing its contents to spill out. 

"Oh! That's right!" You leaned down, grabbing one of the items now scattered and picking it up. "I got this for you while I was down there, like a souvenir."

You passed him the item, instantly wincing as the headmaster hugged you in pure glee. "THIS IS A ULTRA-LIMITED MOON SAILOR KEYCHAIN FIGURE! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! YOU'RE THE BEST DAUGHTER IN THE WHOLE WORLD!"

You were getting unbelievably dizzy from all of the spinning your father was subjugating you to, but you held on for his sake. "I'm glad you like it!"

Mephisto eventually came to a stop, clasping your shoulders with his hands in order to look you in the eyes. "I love it Pumpkin, but how on Earth did you manage to get your hands on this?"

"Huh? Oh, there was this guy who was just selling a bunch of weeb shit down by the docks our last night there. Apparently he was moving onto a houseboat and couldn't keep most of his stuff with him." You picked up your bag, showing off another small figure attached to the strap. "I also got this little guy too so now we match. I figured you'd want the lady, so I went ahead and put him on my bag."

"Thank you, my dear. That's very thoughtful of you." Mephisto leaned over, placing a chaste kiss upon your forehead in gratitude. He pulled away, reaching his hand into his inner coat pocket before pulling out something shiny. "I was going to save this for your birthday, however, I believe now is as good of a time as any to give it to you."

You blinked, watching as he took your dominant hand in one of his own, using his other to place the object into your palm and gently force your fingers to curl around it. It was smooth, that was the first thing you noticed about it, yet it clearly had refined details etched into it's frame from the feel of it's surface. 

Mephisto let go of your hand slowly, allowing you to look down at his gift with your own eyes. 

"It's...a pocket watch?" Indeed it was. It was a generously sized watch colored a metallic sheen of lavender. It had very simple yet elegant-looking detailing on its front with what appeared to be a tear-shaped ruby on the underside. 

"Yes, I had it engraved especially for you." Mephisto smiled, not that you were looking up to see it, but you could hear it in his voice. It was odd. This wasn't like any other gift he'd ever seen fit to give you before. Usually he'd get you dresses or jewelry, which you never really found the proper occasion to wear, or sometimes even new sports equipment that you could use daily. You looked up at him in confusion, but were softly hushed before you could question the odd man. "That jewel on the back belonged to your mother. The original necklace was, unfortunately, broken in the accident, so I saw it fit to combine it with something of mine to give to you once you were old enough."

That was enough to shut you up.

Your father rarely spoke of either of your birth parents, simply explaining that they'd perished in an accident less than a day after you were born. It made you pretty sad to think about, so you tried not to, and you could only assume the headmaster didn't say much about it in an attempt to spare your feelings. 

You silently examined the watch, turning it over in your hands several times before finally popping open the cover to get a look at the clock face inside. 

"Huh?" Your face scrunched up as you immediately noticed something wrong. "It's broken."

The clock was completely still, both hands merely a minute away from midnight. You moved to at least straighten both hands for aesthetic purposes, but were quickly stopped by your old man.

"I would be careful if I were you. This watch is exceedingly fragile and, once those clock hands move forward, things can never go back to being the same again." Mephisto warned, going back to sipping his tea despite the fact you were pretty sure it was freezing by now. You eyed the clock for a little while longer before closing it shut once more, placing it in your pocket for safe keeping. 

"Thank you, Papa..." 

"You're welcome, _mäuschen_." 

You spent a little more time in the tea room, mostly making small talk with your father before finally parting ways. You still had some time left before your break was over and you could find no better pastime than lazing about your room and binging hours of your favorite shows and sports marathons. 

Though, as much as you enjoyed this, you couldn't help but get a little lonely after a few days of it. This was never an issue for you before so you honestly had no clue why on Earth you were craving company. Was it maybe because of... _that person?_

Now that you really thought about it, you had been spending more time with them lately than you'd ever spent with anyone in probably your entire life. It was no wonder you were practically craving their attention now that you were finally alone. 

Moments after reaching this realization, you picked up your phone. You were still on break, so there shouldn't be any harm in asking them to hang out, right?


	12. Uniform {Shiemi}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You help Shiemi try on her school uniform.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Told you I'd update quickly this time! Lol
> 
> This chapter is honestly the shortest of the three, I feel so bad. Sorry Shiemi ;-;
> 
> This one takes place before the amusement park episode just for context. Rin's does too and Mephisto's is gonna take place after. 
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

To your surprise, Shiemi messaged you first.

FlowerPower: _Miss (Y/n), I hope I'm not bothering you, but I was wondering if you'd help me out with something..._

There she goes calling you 'Miss' again. Here you'd thought you'd finally broken her of the habit. 

She sounded serious though, worrying you a little. Was Izumo picking on her again? If things got any worse between those two, you'd probably join the cram school yourself just to protect the garden girl from the purple-haired witch. You quickly typed back a reply.

You: _Sure thing Shiemi! Be there in 10 ^3^_

You threw on your jacket, quickly leaving the sanctity of your room to head to Shiemi's.

"Um, thank you again for helping me out, (Y/n)..." Clearly embarrassed, Shiemi thanked you for what was probably the tenth time in a row.

"Hey, it's no problem! It's what friends are for, right?" You stood on the other side of the door waiting for Moriyama to get through dressing. Apparently she wanted help with the school's uniform to make sure she was wearing it correctly. It was kinda odd to you considering you were still on break, but maybe she just wanted to get a head start on practicing? You tried not to judge too harshly.

"So, what do you think?" Eventually the blonde stepped out, causing you to turn your attention her way. You immediately choked on whatever spit had been in your mouth at the sight of her.

She looked incredibly different in her uniform than she had in her yukata, you were honestly a little surprised that this was even the same person. 

She looked cute in the outfit, if not a little sloppy from a few accidental mistakes while dressing, but those could easily be fixed. If you let her out like this, you had no doubt Shiemi would have a line of suitors waiting for her to notice them. Your eyes scrunched up at the thought, for some reason making you feel an uncomfortable burning inside you'd never felt before.

Taking your expression the wrong way, Shiemi frowned. "Does it look that weird? Maybe I should just go back to my yukata..."

"No, no!" You shook your head, snapping out of your trance and hastily attempting to fix any damage your glare might've caused. "You look really nice, a few things just need to be straightened up a little."

You approached carefully, gently taking hold of the knotted bow tied much too loosely around her neck. 

"Here, lemme show you how to tie this." You carefully unknotted the ribbon, trying your hardest not to get too frustrated and scare Shiemi. Sooner than later, you finally managed to get it loose, allowing each end to hang loosely at the sides of her chest. You went to start retying the bow, however, as you reached up to take up both ends, you realized your hands were shaking. You took a deep breath and tried your best to stop, but couldn't no matter how hard you tried.

All of a sudden, soft, pale hands grasped your own, immediately soothing the shaking. "Are you okay?"

You look up, your eyes meeting her own gaze of concern. You swallow, feeling your cheeks warm in response. "Yeah..."

Closing your eyes for a moment, you nodded, slowly beginning to tie the bow so Shiemi could watch. 

"There." You took a step back, allowing the other girl to look in the mirror after straightening out the uniform. "I'm no professional stylist, but I'd say you look pretty good!"

"You really think so?" Shiemi turned to look at you, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Y-yeah! Of course! Please don't cry..." You quickly patted yourself down trying to find something, anything at all to wipe her tears, but before you could grab anything, you were embraced.

Shiemi hugged you tightly, nuzzling into your chest. You almost lost your balance, but managed to steady yourself before either of you could fall. This wasn't helping the return of crimson creeping its way onto your face, but you returned the hug, gently holding the fragile blonde close to you.


	13. Mate {Rin}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You invite Rin over to play some video games, but things get a little weird...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope y'all enjoy this one! These three chapters are mostly just fluff for fluffs sake, but I tied in a little relevance to the plot I promise lol
> 
> This takes place before the amusement park episode for context.
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

You: _Hey chicken, come over to my place. I just bought a new game and its got pvp. I'm tired of kicking npc butt so lemme kick yours instead : P_

Chicken: _wtf i'd like to see you try_

Chicken: _ill be over soon yukios trying to make me study rn D : <_

You put your phone down, not even bothering to tease Okumura about the way he texted. You really wanted to cut him some slack anyway. Apparently, before you, the only people he'd ever messaged in his life were Yukio and his old man, not that you had any room to judge. Before this school year, your dad'd been the only person on your contact list, but now, you had Rin, Shiemi, and the guy who delivered your favorite chips to the school's vending machines; _that was a weird Tuesday._

You slipped on a hoodie while waiting, deciding to at least try a little to mask the fact you were still in your jammies, not really noticing what jacket you were putting on at the time. 

It wasn't for about another hour that a knock came from the other side of your bedroom door. "Miss, your company has arrived."

Oh, Rin was finally here. You hurried to open the door, not really in the mood to keep them waiting. Belial stood at the doorway, bowing a bit before allowing the boy into your room. 

"Thanks Belial!" You shut the door behind the ravenette, watching as Rin eyed your room in awe.

"This place is friggin' huge! You really live here?" Okumura practically shouted. Your home was a lot different than the dorms, so it's no wonder he was so out of his element.

"Yup! Lived here my whole life. Honestly, its kinda lost it's novelty." You shrugged, flopping onto the couch in front of the tv, grabbing the controllers to your gaming system. You tossed one to Rin, who caught it in one hand much to your surprise. "Woah, nice catch. Your reflexes must be getting better."

"Ya think so?" The boy couldn't help but tilt his head a bit. 

"Totally. I'm impressed. Whatever kinda training you're doing is really paying off." You gestured for the Okumura to sit next to you, smiling as you offered him the compliment.

Rin couldn't help but to clam up a bit at the word 'training', but tried not to stress too hard on it. There's no way you'd ever guess that the only kind of training he was going through was hunting demons with the cram school. He took his seat next to you wordlessly, waiting patiently for you to boot up the game. 

"Oh, hold on. This is the wrong disk." You stood up, heading over to a whole shelf of games nearby.

You didn't notice, but Rin's eyes trailed your figure as you did so, watching your every movement even if he didn't realize it himself. There was just something about you that the exorcist-in-training couldn't help but be captivated by.

Rin froze, suddenly noticing something that'd been staring him right in the face as soon as he'd entered the room. _Was that HIS hoodie you were wearing from that trip to the beach?_

"Y-you need any help looking for it?" The half-demon felt his face go red at the realization, only offering to help you look to get his mind off of how surprisingly good you looked in his clothing.

"Sure." You shrugged, not noticing the other's internal struggle and simply continuing your search.

Rin, shaking off his initial embarrassment, walked over to the shelf, looking over each of the different games stacked neatly on top. 

"Wow, I should've known you were a sports nut even in your taste in games." The Okumura rolled his eyes. You were obsessed and you couldn't convince him otherwise. It was then that he caught sight of a game in pretty pink packaging, much unlike all the others. "Woah, what's this?"

"Huh? Wait don't-!" You were too late. Rin pulled out the game in question, leaving you to watch in horror as he discovered your dark secret.

"Is this...an otome?" You could hear the boy holding back his snickers in every word. "Didn't know you were into pretty boys, Faust."

You snatched the game from his hands, hiding it behind your back as quickly as you could.

"I-It's one of my old man's creepy weeb things I swear!" As believable as that lie might've been, the harsh blush spread across your cheeks told another story.

Before either of you could continue, a knock came from your door. "Miss, pardon the intrusion, but I've brought a tray for you and your guest."

Ah, saved by Belial. You really needed to check in with your father to make sure he gets that pay raise. You sped over to the door, thrusting it open, knowing there was no chance at startling the stone-faced servant. You clasped Belial's shoulder, grinning in gratitude. "Thank you, Belial. You're the greatest!"

A moment passed and you released the butler from your hold, taking the tray and moving to place it on the table by the couch. You shut the door as Belial left, promptly picking up a piece of popcorn and popping it into your mouth afterwards.

"Does that guy do everything around here?" Rin asked, accepting a bar of chocolate you'd held out to him. 

"Pretty much." You popped the game you'd been searching for into your system, sitting back down onto the couch next to Rin when you were done. "Ready to get your butt kicked?"

"You're on!"

And so, the two of you played for hours, always somehow ending up in a tie despite the game's straightforward mechanics. This didn't really bother either of you though, simply motivating you both to keep trying until you were tired.

"Dang, is it that late already?" You looked at your phone before placing it down gently on the table now covered in a heap of half-eaten snacks.

"Yeah, I guess I should be gettin' home soon. I kinda told Yukio we were having a study group that ended at seven." Rin sighed, running fingers through his dark bangs. 

You casually leaned onto the half-demon, a little sad it was time for you to part ways. "Sounds rough. Having a top-student for a twin brother's gotta get real old real quick."

Rin's breath hitched, unable to actually hear what you'd said. His eyes narrowed as an unusual scent hit his senses coming straight from your form. It wasn't your normal scent in the least. In fact, he could tell with complete certainty that the scent was that of another demon.

He suddenly remembered your interaction with that butler, it must've belonged to him...

_Mine._

One moment you were chilling beside your best friend without any worry in the world and, in the next, you were being pinned to the couch by said best friend who was nuzzling into your neck as if his life depended on it.

"Um, Rin?" You poked the half-demon's back in confusion. It didn't really hurt, it was really just a super weird hug where the ravenette laid on top of you. Was he trying to roughhouse? If so, this was a pretty odd way of doing it. Usually the two of you would wrestle a bit before pretending to beat the crap out of each other, never anything super weird or gentle like this. 

Whatever it was, Rin was completely lost to himself and you could start to feel your own mind grow hazy as your eyelids began to droop in response. Both you and Rin took in the other's scent, oddly comforted by each other's presence in that moment. 

Pretty soon, you were both fast asleep on that couch, a sense of peace washing over the demon boy specifically that he couldn't describe. 

Sadly, that peace was interrupted only an hour or so later. 

Rin's ears twitched at the sound of someone clearing their throat, rousing him from his nap. Blinking to clear his blurry vision, the Okumura's heart dropped as none other than Sir Pheles stood over the couch the two of you were laying on. 

"MEPHISTO!? What are you doing here!?" Rin shot up, almost accidentally tripping over the table in his rush.

"Shhh, Mister Okumura. We don't want to wake _Dornröschen_." The headmaster placed a finger to his lips, glancing down at your slumbering figure. It was lucky you were a heavy sleeper or else this conversation would've been even more awkward than it already was. Mephisto continued. "Though, that really should by _my_ question considering this is _my_ home and that is _my daughter_ you've decided to make into your personal body pillow."

"I-I really don't know how that happened!" Rin only continued to grow more and more flustered by the moment. "It's just like I blacked out for a minute after catching a whiff of some other demon..."

"That would be your demonic instincts. Quite a natural reaction in this case." The elder demon pulled a bright pink blanket from what seemed like thin air, gently tossing it over you as you continued to rest. "It seems like you've subconsciously chosen poor (Y/n) as your mate." 

"Mate!? What the hell?" Rin's face lit up red at the implication.

"Yes, mate. Whether you realize it or not, you recognize (Y/n) as a suitable partner to spend your life with." Your father pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation. "Honestly, I should skin you alive for even breathing in her general direction. You're lucky I'm feeling generous tonight."

The younger demon couldn't help but feel as if the smile Mephisto proceeded to offer him was actually some kind of warning. He just hoped Yukio would at least hold a nice funeral for him once the headmaster finally decided to finish him off...

You woke up in the morning with stiff limbs not used to having such limited mobility when sleeping. Why were you on the couch again?

Oh, that's right. You fell asleep here with Okumura.

Looking around, you couldn't see him anywhere. He must've gone home after he woke up. You didn't really mind too much, laying back down with the intention of falling back asleep. Holding the collar of your hoodie up to your nose, you couldn't resist taking a whiff at the lingering scent of Rin's shampoo still hanging onto the fabric. 

You didn't take him for a cuddler, but it somehow felt right when the two of you were so close.


	14. Shura for Sure {Mephisto}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You bring your father a nice, nutritional lunch only to meet the cram school's newest teacher.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last one for tonight! Yay! 
> 
> Like I said in Rin's chapter, all of these are basically just fluff for fluffs sake with a bit of plot relevance sprinkled in, however, out of the three, I'd say this chapter is the most plot-related not leaning towards any specific route or ending. 
> 
> Please enjoy! 
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

Checking the time on your phone, it was around lunch break, which presented an opportunity in itself. 

You quickly headed to the kitchen, opening up the fridge and nearly every cabinet in the room as you got to work. You picked up an empty bento box, starting to fill it with things you imagined your father would like to eat, not really paying attention to if those things really made sense being eaten with each other or not. In the end, the box looked nearly inedible, but you were so proud of your creation you didn't notice.

Rushing past a certain demonic butler, you headed to your father's office, bento in hand. You managed to break a sweat, causing you to almost consider adding running this route on your daily routine, but ultimately abandoning the idea since the headmaster would very likely disapprove. Still, it was such a long walk that it made for a good workout, which you could always find the time to appreciate. 

Wiping the sweat from your brow, you knocked gently on the solid oak doors to your old man's study. 

_"Come in~"_

You entered the room nervously, somehow feeling as if you were doing something wrong despite the fact that you knew you weren't. 

"Oh? To what do I owe the pleasure, my little _cat sídhe?_ " Based off of his tone alone, you felt as if he somehow already knew exactly why you were there. 

You shook off the feeling, approaching his desk carefully before holding out your handmade lunch for the older man to take. "Here, I know you like those ramen cups, but you've gotta eat actual food sometimes."

"My, my, did you make this for me? How wonderful! I'm sure it's del-" The headmaster cut himself off, opening the bento box and discovering the absolute mess of what you'd claimed to be food sitting inside. "...icious." 

Mephisto cleared his throat, noting the hopeful expression on your face. 

"Something this wonderful must be saved for later at a better time to appreciate it. Thank you very much, Pumpkin." You were satisfied enough with his answer, offering him a bright smile in response.

"Sooo, what are you up to today, Pops?" You leaned against the solid wooden desk, eyeing the papers scattered atop it. 

"Now, _mäuschen_ , you know better than to stick that adorable nose of yours where it doesn't belong." As if to punctuate his words, Mephisto booped your nose before gathering the sheets of paper into a pile, straightening them using the table. "If you must know, I have a new teacher coming in to drop off a some files in a few minutes and then I have an absolute _mountain_ of paperwork. I am so sorry your Papa can't keep you company today."

"A new teacher?" Your face scrunched in confusion. You remembered hearing that all of the staff applications were filled, so for someone to be hired so late into the school year was really odd.

"Yes. She's here to lecture at the cram school, so you won't be learning under her I'm afraid." Mephisto explained, pulling out more papers from his desk drawer. 

"Shame." Your father's explanation made sense, putting any suspicions you'd had to rest. 

Three knocks came from the study's door before it swung open, revealing a redheaded woman on the other side.

"Yo, I'm here to drop off those files." She was carrying a large stack of papers stuffed into manilla folders over her chest. Despite this, you could still tell that, for some reason, this woman wasn't wearing a shirt. Instead she wore a bikini top paired with bootyshorts and jacket that probably didn't actually do much to protect her skin from the cold. The ensemble showed off a long tattoo on her skin that spread from the top of her chest to below her bellybutton which actually suited her quite well.

You tried your best not to stare too intensely. Maybe she was just going to the beach after this or perhaps she was planning to use the school's private swimming pool. Either way, you couldn't help but feel drawn to her beauty. 

And her massive melons, but mostly her beauty. 

"Ah, Miss Kirigakure. Always a pleasure." Despite the pleasantries, you could somehow tell your father was faking his pleased expression, not that he was trying very hard to hide it. You got the sense that this was someone he didn't get along with.

"Hm? Who's this, a student?" The redheaded woman finally noticed you, plopping the pile of folders onto the headmaster's desk while she did so. "Go home kid, vacation ain't over yet!" 

She was clearly teasing, very lax for someone who'd just entered their new boss' office.

"I am home, lady; I live here." You huffed, inching a little closer to your papa to create some distance between you and the newcomer.

"Huh?" 

"Miss Kirigakure, allow me to introduce you to my daughter; (Y/n) Faust." Mephisto explained, a smile crossing his lips as he eyed the woman, gauging her reaction. 

"(Y/n), huh?" After shooting the purple-haired headmaster a look that clearly promised they'd talk about this later, the woman eyed you up and down as if she was silently scrutinizing you. "So you're the one Okumura was gettin' all hot and bothered about. No wonder; you're pretty cute. Nice to meet ya." 

"Okumura? You mean Rin?" Had Rin really spoken about you to this woman?

It shouldn't be too surprising that they'd met considering she was going to be teaching at the cram school, but something else bothered you about her that you were honestly surprised you didn't notice sooner. Strapped to her back was a case used to sheath swords much like the one your raven-haired friend carried around on the daily... 

You once asked him why he lugged it with him since you knew for a fact he didn't practice kendo. He explained that the sword was an heirloom from his father, not willing to go much deeper into it than that.

If that were truly the case, you had a hard time imagining him handing over such a precious item to a woman he'd just met. 

"That's Rin's sword, isn't it?" You glared, fully prepared to throw hands in your friend's honor if it came down to it. "Listen lady, I don't care how big your boobs are; you're not gonna get away with stealing from my friend!"

"Calm down. I didn't steal it; he's letting me hold onto it for him so he doesn't get himself into any more trouble while he's training to use it." Her explanation still sounded pretty fishy to you, but you guessed you'd find out the truth sooner or later the next time you spoke with Okumura. To your surprise, Miss Kirigakure smiled. "You're pretty sharp aren't ya? You sure you're this clown's kid?" 

You grit your teeth, curling your hands tightly into fists at the insult to your father. You were getting real tired of people calling him a clown all the time.

Luckily, before you could even open your mouth again, Mephisto spoke up once more.

"That wasn't very nice. Here I thought you'd be a bit kinder now that I'm your employer." The headmaster sighed dramatically, taking the folders the redhead had brought in into his arms to file them. "Now, if you'll excuse us Miss Kirigakure, I'm afraid I'm on my lunch break and my wonderful daughter was generous enough to pack my meal for today."

Your face flushed red, successfully distracting you from your previous anger.

"Whatever." The strange teacher shrugged, heading out of the room only to stop in the doorway. "And, Mephisto: the Vatican's gonna hear about this whenever they discover the Okumura boy." 

"I wouldn't assume anything less." Your father didn't seem to bothered by the obvious warning.

The redheaded woman left with those ominous parting words leaving you even more confused than when she'd entered. "Papa, what's she talking about? Is Rin in some kinda trouble?"

"Don't you worry your pretty head about it, Pumpkin. Your papa has everything under control." Your father stood, placing a hand to your head gently as he gave it a soft stroke, causing your head to go a bit fuzzy. What were you talking about again? 

All of a sudden, the petting stopped as Mephisto pulled away.

"Though, I must admit, I'm quite jealous. Rin Okumura seems to mean an awful lot to you nowadays." The suited man hummed, causing your attention to be pulled back into reality. "I just hope you're not starting to like him more than your dear papa."

"No way!" You were quick to object. You shuffled around hastily, shoving your hands into the various pockets provided by your outfit until finally you found what you were looking for. You pulled out the pocket watch given to you not long ago by the man in front of you. You held it up, showing off its pristine condition with pride. "I've been carrying this thing around with me everywhere, so it's like I've got a piece of you with me like all the time. That's more than I can say for Okumura."

This response seemed to satisfy Mephisto, his form relaxing just a bit as another smile formed on his lips. "My dear, I can think of no truer statement in all my years of living."

You wound up staying there most of the day, eventually falling asleep on one of the couches available for company. Only then was when the demon lord saw it fit to toss the unfortunate bento right out of the nearest open window.


	15. Marriage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just because you liked Frozen 2 didn't necessarily mean you wanted to live through one of it's most popular song sequences.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woaaaah it's only been like 2 days, what??  
> Honestly, I wanted to wait til next week to post this, but y'alls comments got me pumped and suuppper excited for these next few chapters omg.  
> The next one's already finished too, so it shouldn't be long before that one comes out.
> 
> Thank all of you so much for your support, I really appreciate it. I'm super happy to announce we've finally hit 100 kudos! Yay! This is honestly my favorite fic I've probably ever written so it makes me so glad that other people enjoy it just as much ^^
> 
> One more thing before I let you read. This is kind of **IMPORTANT** so feel free to give feedback if you feel like doing so. I'm considering editing each chapter and making the MC gender neutral rather than specifically someone who uses she/her pronouns. If I did this, there wouldn't be much change in the plot, but certain scenes would definitely be different to accommodate the change. Just letting you guys know this so you're not super confused on what happens to certain chapters lmao
> 
> I know this was a pretty long author's note, thank you for bearing with me. I hope you enjoy this next chapter!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Man, you sure go on a lotta trips with that cram school. Are you sure you're actually learning anything?" You huffed, watching as Rin dumped a small pile of clothes near the bag that sat in front of you. "I'm almost jealous. Maybe I should sign up for next semester."

"Nah, trust me they're all super boring! 'Sides, this way you can keep doing sports!" And Rin wouldn't have to worry about you seeing him get his ass handed to him by demons like Amaimon. Not that he planned on running into that guy again, much less let him anywhere near you. "Thanks for helping me pack by the way. I've never been to these woods before so I'm not really sure what to bring if I'm honest."

"No problem! I think my dad used to take me hiking there a lot when I was little." You picked up one of the shirts Rin had tossed into the pile, beginning to fold it like you'd seen Belial do a few times before. 

"You _think_?" Rin raised a brow, sitting on the floor beside your legs and folding a pair of pants from the same mound.

"Yeah. His face gets kinda blurry in pretty much all of those memories, but I'm sure it was him." It was probably just because you'd been so young at the time. After doing some research on that odd flashback from the garden, you'd thought you'd read something somewhere about children not being able to easily recognize faces and just sorta shrugged that mysterious figure off as being your father. "I didn't really know anyone else back then, so who else could it've been?"

Rin accepted your explanation with no further comment, almost seeming lost in thought like something was bothering him.

"Done!" You didn't notice, simply presenting the wadded up shirt you'd carefully 'folded' and moving to toss it into the half-demon's bag. You were so proud that you didn't see the flick to the forehead you quickly received coming. "Ow! Hey! What's the big idea!?" 

"That's not how you're supposed to do it! Here." Rin took your hands, naturally going through the motions of folding a shirt as if by total instinct. "There, see?"

"Yeah..." You held up the article of clothing almost as if you were admiring it. "Say, you'd make a pretty good housewife, Chicken! Ya know, you could just drop outta that cram school if you married and came to live with me~"

"Sh-shut up! You just want a live-in maid. Don't you already have a butler?" Rin looked away so you wouldn't catch the red hue rapidly spreading across his cheeks. 

"Yeah, but I'm pretty sure my dad's gonna want me to move out at some point and I can't exactly take Belial with me when I go." You pouted, picking up another shirt and trying the process again. "Then again, maybe I could get away with mooching off my old man forever. When you think about it, this is a pretty solid plan for you to get in on the mooching too!"

Rin could barely hold back his cringe. "Living with that clown for the rest of my life? No thanks, I'll pass."

"I'm tellin' ya, he's not _that_ bad." You shrugged, letting the clown comment slide just this once. "Your loss though."

"Guess this is it." Both you and Rin stood before the vehicle meant to take him and his classmates to the lower region of True Cross. Everyone else had already loaded in, leaving Rin last. You were sad to see him leave, but you secretly hoped he'd have a good time. "I'm gonna miss you, Chicken." 

Rin wasn't prepared to be hugged, but quickly accepted the one you gave him anyway. 

"Yeah..." The Okumura squeezed, growing a little too comfortable in your arms. "Who's gonna bug me the entire time we're there?"

"Easy; Eyebrows of course." You snorted, pulling back from the embrace. For some reason, you found it really hard to let go. You couldn't explain why, but it oddly enough felt as if this would be the last time you saw Rin for a very, very long time. You weren't quite sure when you'd become such a sap, but you brushed off the feeling of paranoia and continued. "I wouldn't put it past Pinky to harass you into helping him find Bigfoot just to make sure he's not actually a sexy lady hiding in the woods, though, so you might have to deal with that too."

"Hey! I can hear you ya know!" 

Ignoring Shima, you watched Rin get load up just as the others had done. 

It was actually a pretty mellowing scene, watching as the group left to go on their camping trip, but you knew they'd be back soon. The thought of your friend returning and the two of you hanging out again to celebrate was the only happy thing you could imagine coming from this situation.

Oh well. Until then, you could always just go bother your old man.

Speaking of, a familiar bright pink limo pulled into your view as soon as you'd had the thought. "Huh?"

"Surprise!" Mephisto placed a hand on your shoulder, though you weren't entirely sure when he'd shown up. "Remember how you'd wanted to take that trip together, _mäuschen_?"

"We're going right now?" You peeked into the limo through the window, noting that it was completely empty, save for the driver separated by a darkened glass pane. "I haven't packed or anything."

"Oh, don't worry, Pumpkin! I took the liberty of having Belial pack a few things for you. They're in the trunk right now." Mephisto opened the door for you like a gentleman, smiling as he patiently waited for you to get in. 

"Why didn't you tell me we were going anywhere?" You were still confused, but you trusted your father enough to enter the vehicle, sitting on the far right so Mephisto could take the left.

"I wanted it to be a surprise, of course." The moment the door closed, the driver took off, moving much faster than what should be possible for such a lengthy car. The headmaster continued. "You've been such a dear lately, I felt as if I simply had to reward you somehow. This way, you get to enjoy yourself and _I_ get to leave that nasty pile of paperwork behind for the weekend! Perfect, isn't it?"

"Uh, yeah. Sure pops." This was exactly the type of thing your father would pull to get out of work. Honestly, you were only surprised he hadn't tried it much earlier. "Where are we going anyway?" 

"The woods of Lower True Cross Academy. We're going camping." Ok, now that was weird. Your father was entirely too bougie to sleep in the woods and no paperwork or request of yours would ever be able to change that. Plus, he was ignoring the obvious.

"What about the cram school guys?" 

"Oh, we should be seeing them much later in our endeavor, but, for now, it's just the two of us, my little _Schätzchen_." The car stopped, it's left-side door flying open automatically. Your father gestured for you to exit. "Ladies first~"

Rolling your eyes, you stepped out, taking in a breath of fresh air provided by the woodland around you. You were in a clearing which was strange because there didn't seem to be sign of a road nearby anywhere. Did the limo really drive through all of these tightly condensed trees to get you here?

You turned around to ask your papa, only to find both him and the limo gone as if they'd never been there in the first place. What?

Stumbling back in shock, you tried looking around for any kind of sign indicating the direction they'd gone. 

"Papa...?" Your voice came out a lot softer than you'd intended. Did he really just... _leave_ you? The man who'd raised you for so long, taking you in, feeding you, clothing you, making sure you were bathed, really just up and left you in the middle of the woods with no clue of where you were or how to get home. Was this really happening?

Surprisingly enough, in the moment, you were much more angry than sad. Your chest was filled with a vaguely familiar fire, one you clearly hadn't felt in a long time, as you fought to keep it contained within your body.

Your entire being just seemed to be telling you to _destroy_ while a small pit deep inside of your heart knew that it'd never truly make your problems go away.

It was nearly pitch black at this point, making it almost impossible to see, yet you still managed to find a large tree branch nearby. Picking it up, you tested the weight in your hands, making sure it was a good size for what you were planning to do next.

"RRRRRAAAAAAAHHH!" You swung at the closest tree in anger, beating it as if it'd broken into your house, popped holes in every soccer ball you owned and called you a _clowntochter_ all at the same time. It helped to imagine all the people who'd referred to you in such a degrading manner, most of them oddly related to the cram school, until your rage had finally quelled.

You only stopped when you were out of breath, the branch having snapped in half long into your little tantrum. 

Catching your breath, your brain went into overdrive. Now that you thought about it, there was no way your _father_ of all people would just ditch you in the middle of nowhere by yourself. That was ridiculous! 

You started to laugh, running your sweaty palms through your dampened hair in a sense of relief that washed over you. Of course he didn't leave! He was simply waiting for you nearby, probably just wanting to watch you squirm a bit.

" _Very funny, Papa._ " You called out sarcastically into the woods ahead of you. "I'll remember next time to be more specific on what kinda vacation I wanna take."

You began walking through the dark forest, searching for any kind of light to guide you through. You walked and walked for what felt like hours on end, only stopping to debate climbing a tree to see if you could spot the campsite or signs of civilization at all. You were tired, sweaty from all the physical activity you'd been doing, and emotionally tapped altogether. When this was over, you were going to head straight for the tub in your father's master bathroom, the one that bubbled automatically and had those lovely jet streams, and there was not a single thing he'd be able to do about it.

"Ouch!" You slapped the back of your neck, feeling something sharp poke just below your skull. A mosquito probably. "Damn, bastard could've at least left me with a little fucking bug spray. I shouldn't've let Okumura borrow my only pocket-sized can."

"You mean Rin Okumura, right?" You turned around coming face to face with a dark figure you could just barely make out. Squinting your eyes, you recognized the green spike that came from the head of a familiar punk-rock gentleman you'd met not too long ago. "I just don't see what the big deal is about him. Father and my big brothers are practically obsessed."

"Huh? Amaimon?" You were surprised to see him. You figured after you'd left the beach you'd never see him again, much less near midnight in the middle of the forest. "What are you doin' here?"

"I came to play with my little brother. He's not as strong as I am, but it's pretty funny to see him get angry." Amaimon explained as if it were the most casual thing in the world. "Big brother said I could use you to make sure he wouldn't refuse, so I'm gonna take you now, okay?"

"W-what?" Before you knew it, the other had thrown you over his shoulder, holding you tightly by the waist so you wouldn't wiggle free. Not that you didn't try at least. You beat your fists against his back as hard as you could, which wasn't a force to be scoffed at, yet Amaimon seemed unfazed. Your chest burned once again, this time from the spot roughly located near where your birthmark should've been. 

"Why are you struggling? Shouldn't you be happy?" The green-haired demon sounded genuinely confused. "We can finally get married now and big brother promised not to interfere."

"Married!?" You stopped your beating only to squirm in an attempt to get a look your kidnappers face. There's no way this wasn't some kind of practical joke. "Are you nuts!? Why would think I'd wanna marry you?"

"What? Of course you do. You're the one who proposed to me, after all."

You wanted to argue more, but soon ringing flooded your ears as your body fell limp, making it nearly impossible to hear or move a single inch. Only the memory of one phrase rang through your head as the man known as Amaimon carried you off in an unknown direction.

_"Will you marry me, Mai-mo?"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's fairly short, I know, but trust me it's necessary lmao


	16. Aschenputtel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amaimon uses you as bait to lure out Rin. Then, shit hits the fan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At this point, the story might just start updating on a weekly schedule lmao
> 
> Y'all aren't ready for this, I swear lmao
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING: There's non-consensual kissing in this chapter, but it's over pretty quick and it doesn't go anywhere sexual.
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Ah, looks like the parasite's found your nervous system." You couldn't hear him, but Amaimon sounded pretty pleased with his own work. He carried you for quite a while before he'd landed on a tree branch he was satisfied with, shifting you to sit on his lap much like a kid at the mall telling Santa exactly what they wanted for Christmas. This was no holiday for you, however. 

Your brain was fuzzy, as if it were completely filled with static noise while the ringing from before continued to invade your ears, not allowing you so much as a moment of peace inside of your own mind. Amaimon tilted your chin to look you in the eyes. "It's time for my little brother to come out and play. Go ahead and call for him." 

If you'd been able to think straight, you most definitely would've told him to fuck off, however, you were under his thrall, vulnerable and completely unable to do anything other than his absolute bidding.

" _Come forth and serve thy bearer._ " Rin watched in awe as Shura pulled the sacred sword straight from her stomach. It was times like these he was reminded that his new teacher wasn't the total ditz she pretended to be. Much to his surprise, she then tried to hand him the covered blade. "Here."

The half-demon simply stared as she presented it for him to take. Was this some kind of test?

This lack of response only seemed to frustrate the female exorcist. "What? Take it." 

"You said that I had to beat you for it!" Rin was quick to object.

"I also said I'd give it back when I felt like it." Shura rolled her eyes. Honestly, the nerve of this kid. "What's the matter? Take it. That's what you wanted isn't it?"

"I thought you wanted to suppress my flame! You told me not to use it!" The ravenette was close to shouting. This woman was a total puzzle to him. One minute he's supposed to keep from using his flame at all costs and the next it's suddenly fine?

"Pipe down. I did, but you used it anyway!" Shura laughed cynically at the outburst. She was right. He'd used his flame to save Shiemi from those moths within the first ten minutes of their training exercise, in complete total disregard of what she'd told him about the Order. The redhead simply shook her red head and continued. "Anyway, what can you do...without your flame?"

Rin wasn't completely sure of that himself. He held the koma sword in his hands, staring at the sealed blade as if it would somehow simply give him the answers, but it never would.

"Think about it, alright?" The kunoichi insisted. "Amaimon is no pushover. _Think about it_."

The half-demon did think about it. This Amaimon guy up and attacked the exwires out of nowhere and he probably wouldn't give up just because they'd managed to escape. If he wanted to protect his friends, he'd have to do without the use of his demonic powers. Despite the disadvantage, he was absolutely sure that he'd win in the end. He _had_ to. If he didn't, who knows what that maniac would do next? 

Rin couldn't afford the luxury of assuming the demon king would simply stop at conquering the forest. No. If he continued his rampage, Amaimon would probably wreck havoc throughout True Cross Academy, putting hundreds of civilians in harms way, including-

" _...in..._ "

Rin felt his ear twitch. Wow. He was thinking about you so hard, he could practically hear your voice.

" _Rin..._ " 

Okay, now it was getting a little freaky. 

There wasn't a chance you were just out in the middle of the forest in the dead of night, was there?

" _Help me, Rin..._ "

Rin's eyes widened at the soft cry for help; there was no way he could ignore that. He took a mad dash into the direction he was able to discern your voice was coming from, leaving behind some very concerned classmates and upper-level exorcists.

"Where ya goin', Okumura!?" 

Ignoring Shima's shout, he continued into the forest, Shura in tow. 

At least she had been until Amaimon's faithful Behemoth dropped down into her path.

"Rin! You better not do anything stupid!" The swordswoman called out to the half-demon's retreating figure. "I'll be right behind ya!"

"Okumura!" Bon quickly approached the outer edge of the barrier, watching as his teacher took on the monstrous creature one-on-one.

"The rest of you stay inside the shield!" Shura ordered, hoping Rin knew what he was doing.

Rin, in fact, did not. All he knew was that you were calling for him, so of course he'd come for you. Luckily for him, you were easily located. However, seeing you in the clutches of Amaimon seriously pissed him off.

"Amaimon!" The half-demon growled, noting your limp form and the glazed look in your eyes. "What did you do to her!?"

"Huh? Oh, I just had a moth lay an egg in her." Oof. You weren't going to be too happy about that whenever you snapped out of it. Or any of this for that matter. The demon king's nonchalant attitude wasn't helping one bit either. "It took a while for it to hatch and find her nerves, but now she'll do whatever I say."

"What the hell? What do you want with (Y/n)!?" Rin held his still-sheathed sword up in a threatening manner, prepared to strike at any moment. 

"I wanna make her my bride of course." Amaimon softly stroked your cheek, careful not to puncture any skin with his horrifically long nails.

"W-what!?" Of all things Rin had expected, he would admit that was not one of them. "You can't do that!"

"Of course I can. She's already agreed; see?" Pulling down your shirt's collar to just below your collarbone, Amaimon revealed the dark splotch you had insisted was a birthmark not long ago. Unlike then, it was now glowing a dark, angry red, looking painful if the Okumura had to guess. "She bears the mark of the earth. She's betrothed to me." 

Rin couldn't believe it. He _wouldn't_ believe it. While the exwire stood in shock, the earth king turned his attention back to you. 

"Now, let's take our vows. Do you promise to be true to me, in sickness and in health, to love me, to honor me, and help me until death do us part?" Amaimon cupped your cheek with gentleness that would've surprised you had you been any form of conscious. Unwillingly, you mutely nodded in response. "Then I now pronounce us husband and wife. I may now kiss the bride."

Rin watched in horror as Amaimon pressed his lips to yours in a kiss you couldn't reciprocate. The demon king tangled his fingers through your hair, keeping you close to him as his lips moved harshly against your own as if he was impatient and wanted to rush into something more. It was only when he snaked out a long, disturbing tongue to lick your lips that the half-demon finally snapped out of it. 

"KNOCK IT OFF!" 

Rin bashed the sheathed koma sword right into Amaimon's skull, knocking the king of earth backwards with tremendous force. 

"That's what I was gonna say!" Amaimon hissed, managing to keep his grasp on you as he flew back into the fray to counter. "You're supposed to draw the sword, so why haven't you?"

Drop kicking Rin into the ground below, the demon king continued.

"Stop messing around." Amaimon was able to beat Rin soundly, all while at the disadvantage of carrying you the entire time. "How strange, isn't this girl important to you?"

"Drop dead." The exwire muttered, coughing up blood. 

"Well then, I guess it's time to take her back to Ghenna with me." Amaimon shrugged, reaching into his pocket and pulling out something he'd taken off of you much earlier. "But first, I need to undo that seal big brother put in place."

"Huh?" Rin looked up, recognizing the item the demon held as your pocket watch you'd been so proud to show him only days earlier. You'd insisted it was fragile, not even allowing your best friend to hold it, making it clear how much you treasured the item. Was Amaimon planning to smash it? "No, don't!"

Surprisingly, the demon king merely popped it open, revealing the clock face inside. "Here it is! If I remember right, all I have to do is move the hands..."

Rin struggled to his feet as the other exwires arrived at the scene just in time to watch Amaimon painstakingly move both hands the way your father had specifically advised you not to. 

The hands clicked forward until they were both fully upright, the ringing of the academy's clocktower signifying that the watch was now, ironically, correct despite being broken and that it was officially midnight.

Nothing happed for a moment. All was silent from both exorcist and demon alike as every single one of them stood around in confusion. 

"Huh? I was sure that was how big brother said it'd work..." Amaimon seemed more disappointed than anything. "Oh well, guess we'll figure it out in Ghenna."

Before he could move, however, the clock that Mephisto had stated was completely busted began _ticking_.

Intense burning shocked you out of your hypnosis, the overwhelming pain spreading through every individual vein connected inside of you. You couldn't tell what was happening, but it felt as if you needed to shed your skin completely in order to grow into a new one where the pain would be much less prominent.

Those on the outside, however, were able to witness what could only be described as your drastic transformation firsthand. The whole group watched as you were bathed in a purple glow. Your ears and teeth began to elongate, a tail formed at the base of your spine, and once blunt nails grew to sharpened claws making you quite the sight to behold.

"No way. (Y/n) is..." Rin trailed off, staring slackjawed at your altered form. 

"A DEMON!?" Shima screamed, hands threatening to rip his own hair out from the shock of what he'd just witnessed. 

The first thing you were able to distinguish was a pounding headache making your brain miserable. Your mind was still hazy and you couldn't make out much through vision or sound, but as you collapsed into Amaimon's waiting arms, you made a mental note to sock Shima in the face later.

Then, it was all just black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be the first of multiple endings. Are you ready for it?


	17. Persephone {Amaimon Ending 1}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After winning the battle with Rin, Amaimon takes you back to his home. Confusion ensues.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeey! Happy Halloween! I hope you like this update uwu
> 
> **SPOILER-ISH**  
> Before anything, without giving too much away, I just wanna let you know that this is _not_ the last time Amaimon's gonna show up in the main story!! He's still a romantic interest lol
> 
> I also wanna address that it's manga confirmed that the Baal aren't actually blood related; there's NO INCEST in this fic! If you're worried about Mephisto's route; that's one of the very few planned not to be romantic. Sorry for anyone hoping to date him u-u
> 
> This specific ending actually branches out into a side-fic I'm writing, so keep an eye out for that 👀  
> I'll let you guys know when that's published lol
> 
> Anyway, onto the story! I don't own Blue Exorcist!

You woke up, every muscle in your body aching with a pain you wouldn't believe. Sitting up was a pain, yet you still forced yourself despite your body's complaints. 

"Oh goodie! You're awake!" Amaimon stood over you, clearly pleased by your awakening.

"Where...are we?" You rubbed your eyes, looking around to survey your surroundings once you'd registered you weren't dreaming. It was dark, so seeing was kind of difficult, but thanks to a few luminous stones, you could tell you were in some kind of cave. It was fairly spacious as far as caves usually went. Various wrappers from candies you easily recognized littered the whole area to the point where you wouldn't be able to walk one step without picking up a few on your way. Regaining your composure, you glared at the demon king before you. "Where's Rin? What did you do to him?"

"Don't tell me your obsessed with that guy too. I'm your husband now, so the only man you should be interested in is me." Amaimon cupped your face in both of his hands, squishing your cheeks, though not harshly enough to hurt you. 

"Husband!?" This guy was messing with you.

"Yes! You agreed to your vows in the forest, remember?" Strangely enough, you could vaguely recall a muffled conversation leading up to a kiss with a blurred image oddly similar to the Earth King's likeness. Maybe there was some truth to the nonsense this guy was spouting after all. 

Slapping away both of the demon's hands, you deadpanned. "Nice try pal, but something tells me you're not an ordained minister."

"I don't have to be. See?" Amaimon held up one of the more reflective wrappers lying around, showing you your mirror image.

Spotting something odd peeking from underneath the collar of your shirt, you pulled it down, only to gasp at the sight. Your 'birthmark' had spread, now covering the majority of the left side of your chest, turning a muted green hue sometime in the process. 

"Now other demons won't try and eat you while you're occupying my territory. You're welcome." Still not demonstrating any sense of personal space, Amaimon gave your head a pat, obviously feeling a bit full of himself.

"And how long is that gonna be?" Your body began shaking, though you weren't quite sure whether it was in anger or fear at this point.

"I _told_ you people who are married live together forever. Were you just not listening?" Amaimon huffed. "I know we didn't get married in Amhara like you'd wanted, but this game where you act like you don't know me is getting old."

"Amhara..?" Then, you remembered. Those weird daydreams you'd had, the memories of a mysterious man who'd kept you company during your childhood. This was... " _You're_ Mai-mo?"

"Ya know, if you were anyone else, I'd probably pull your teeth out for calling me something stupid like that." The demon king pulled away from you, taking a sucker from his pocket and popping it into his mouth. "But because you're my beloved wife, I guess I'll allow it from you." 

"Gee, thanks." You rolled your eyes, flicking a stray wrapper away from your body.

"I should find something to call _you_ then shouldn't I? Don't both spouses usually have nicknames in human culture?" It obviously wasn't up for debate. Amaimon thought on it for a minute before coming up with something. "I know! I'll call you ' _Nosedive_ '!"

You managed to choke on your own spit. "What?"

"From that day we spent at the beach, remember?" The demon king explained. "You fell off of your board in a 'nosedive'." 

"Damn. Wiped out _once_ and that's what I'm stuck with." You weren't entirely sure if it was Amaimon you were annoyed with or the soon-to-be-constant reminder of your own failure. In the end, you decided it was both. Definitely both. "Ya know, typically couple nicknames are cute like _honey_ , _sweetheart_ , or something unique with a deeper meaning. I'd rather you use my first name if you insist on bein' informal."

"I see. You really are my big brother's kin. I can imagine him saying something a lot similar." The demon was, luckily, unoffended, going back to the drawing board with the whole nickname thing. Though, it didn't take too long for him to come up with a new one. "I got it."

Amaimon suddenly grabbed your arm, pulling you into an embrace you hadn't much say in. He touched his forehead to your own, looking directly into your eyes and brushing his nose against yours.

"You are my _paeonia_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BAD END 1


	18. Revealed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off: Happy Halloween everyone!! Remember to stay safe, especially if you plan on going out tonight. 
> 
> I hope y'all enjoyed last chapter lmao. These are probably the only chapter's that haven't been altered much from the original idea from before the writing process began. Originally I wanted Reader-chan in a wedding dress for these scenes but it didn't wind up fitting into the flow of the chapters u-u
> 
> I also hope you guys enjoyed Amaimon's first ending 👀👀  
> Part 1 of this fic is almost over, but dw, there's several more planned out lmao
> 
>   
> Buuuut I do need y'alls advice on something: Do I make a whole new book for those parts or should I just continue adding chapters to this one? I'm gonna take a poll on the discord soon so you can either vote there or comment below 👌👌👌
> 
> **SPOILER-ISH**  
> I also wanna address that it's manga confirmed that the Baal aren't actually blood related; there's NO INCEST in this fic! If you're worried about Mephisto's route; that's one of the very few planned not to be romantic. Sorry for anyone hoping to date him u-u  
> 
> 
> Anyway, here's the next chapter!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

_"And so, the clock struck midnight and poor Cinderella's evening became nothing but a mirage she was too naive to realize was never real."_

_"Papa, what's a 'mirage'?" You asked, snuggling further into your thick, warm duvet._

_"Well, mein kleiner schatz, a 'mirage' is typically a vision someone has of something beautiful they want more than anything, but isn't actually reality." Mephisto answered, watching as you yawned, trying your best to keep your eyelids from drooping._

_"So, like a dream, but when you're not sleeping?" You'd ultimately failed, your eyes fluttering closed unwillingly._

_"Exactly, my dear." Mephisto stood and gently closed the book despite only being in the middle of the tale. "That's enough for one night, Pumpkin. It is time for me to bid you gute nacht."_

_The headmaster placed a soft kiss to your forehead, tossing up your storybook, only for it to disappear in a puff of pink smoke._

_"Gute nacht, Papa." You mumbled before going out like a light._

_"Sweet dreams, schatz..."_

____________________________________

" _Time to wake up, mäuschen._ " 

The sound of your father's voice gently roused you from your slumber. You could feel his gloved fingers softly stroke your forehead with the lightest of touches, just barely making contact with your overheated skin. 

" _Papa_ , it's summer vacation! Can't I sleep in today?" You rolled over in an attempt to ignore the man's wakeup call. 

Your papa chuckled, pulling away. "I'm afraid not. If you sleep any longer, you'll miss the battle in your honor."

Battle..?

Your eyes shot open. You sat up quickly, despite the harsh pain in what felt like every muscle you owned including your ears, teeth, nails, and something you couldn't quite place. Clutching your stomach in pain, you immediately realized you were still in the forest, or, more accurately, _above_ the forest. 

You were seated on a bright pink couch floating in the sky, sitting next to your father who was sipping on tea and acting like this was a perfectly normal occurrence. A blue light spewed from a nearby clearing, though you weren't sure of the source since your attention was heavily focused on your current predicament. 

"What...happened..?" You felt a long, heavy weight underneath you and couldn't resist pulling it up to get a closer look at what your brain was irrationally telling you was probably a snake. A sharp pain shot up your spine as you tugged on the offending item, only for you to drop it once you'd realized it was a tail. "I have a-! Alright, I get it; this is just a weird dream!" 

"I'd be careful if I were you. The fall from here is quite steep and I'm unsure Mister Okumura would be able to catch you _and_ fight Amaimon at the same time." The headmaster sipped on whatever blend was in his good china. "Also, my dear, for future reference; a lady always keeps her tail hidden. It's bad manners to leave it out."

"Right, right." You took a few moments to fully register what he'd said. "Wait, Rin's fighting Amaimon?"

Was the kidnapping part of your dream too?

"Papa! Where's Rin now?" You turned to your father, looking for answers.

"Funny how _that's_ the first thing you want to know. Not a question about how we're floating or where those blue flames are coming from." Mephisto chuckled, refusing to meet your gaze. "Mister Okumura is down there, right where the forest is set ablaze. However, this is far from a dream and I wouldn't recommend going down there in your current condition."

"Huh? Why not?" You huffed, starting to grow more frustrated. 

"Because, although the sheer power enveloping your body during your... _transformation_ may have destroyed that parasite, it'd still managed to do a number on your nervous system before it perished." Parasite? What was he talking about? "Luckily you're demonic heritage allows for a speedy recovery process, however, it'd be best to wait until the wound is fully healed before rushing into action."

"Demonic...what?" Your face scrunched in confusion. You knew your dad was a total weirdo, but what the fuck was he talking about?

"I'm afraid I have a lot to explain to you, my dear, but most of it will have to wait for now." Mephisto finished his tea, the cup disappearing into thin air as he finally turned to face you.

"Most of it?" Clearly he had more to say.

"Yes. But for now, know this: the reason you've grown a tail, Amaimon had captured you, and that Rin Okumura is trying so very hard to keep you safe is because you are..." The purple bastard paused a few moments to keep you waiting in anticipation. He really was too much of a showman for his own good. He smiled, ignoring the glares you shot his way. "My daughter!" 

"..." You couldn't help but silently deadpan. "Uh, yes? We've already established this. You adopted me as a baby."

"Not quite." Mephisto shook his head. "I'm afraid I'd lied about that little detail. You and I are actually related by blood." 

"Huh? So, you're...my birth father?" And you'd thought things were confusing before. "Why ever tell me I was adopted then?"

"Because _I_ am a demon, my dear." The headmaster explained without truly telling you anything at all. "Up until now, you'd been completely human, but thanks to my troublesome little brother, Amaimon, the seal on your demonic half has been broken, making you _halbdämon_ now."

"Yeaaaah, I didn't understand a word of that at all." You rubbed your temples, trying to process all of this new information. "What exactly _is_ a demon anyway?"

"Demons are monstrous beings that originate from Gehenna; a dark, empty world that mirrors this realm." Mephisto then gave a wide gesture to the atmosphere surrounding the two of you. "This world is Assiah. It's where humans reside and nearly all demons wish to inhabit."

"...are you sure this isn't a dream? All of this sounds pretty crazy to me." You crossed your arms, still not entirely convinced. You had more questions than answers at this point and you were starting to get annoyed. "How come I never knew _any_ of this?"

"That is one of the things I'll need to explain later, Pumpkin." Mephisto gave you a soft pat to the head. "But for now, let's enjoy the show, shall we?"

"Show?" 

"Did you forget? Amaimon and Rin Okumura are still fighting." You looked down and, sure enough, those two were still going at it. 

You watched in awe of Rin's magnificent flames, lighting up the darkened woods with a light you'd certainly wished you'd had earlier. As impressive as it was though, something was clearly wrong. How was he able to do that? You looked to your father for answers once again. "Is Rin a... _demon_ like you?"

"Close." Mephisto hummed, watching as the battle continued. "Rin Okumura's situation is... _unique_ , but he is half-demon just as you are. I suppose that's probably a pretty large reason as to why the two of you get along so well." 

You and Rin were the same then...

You kept watching until you could hardly stand the sight of your friend gone savage, waging a battle that didn't seem anywhere close to ending. "Shouldn't we stop them? They're going to burn the whole academy down!" 

"Hmm. I suppose you're right. Let's go fetch them, shall we?" Mephisto stood, floating in midair before offering you his hand. You accepted warily, though, a bit worried that you'd fall despite the demon's confidence. He then pulled you closer, wrapping your arms around his neck tightly. "Hold on!"

And hold on you did, dangling from the headmaster's neck so that you wouldn't fall to your certain doom. In a puff of pink, you were both suddenly in between the two warring demons, preparing to exchange their next devastating blows.

"Okay, boys, that'll be enough." Mephisto caught one wrist each from both the demon king and the exwire. "Any more of this and my school will be destroyed! Playtime is over for today~"

You looked to Okumura, only more concerned now that you could see his condition up close. Blue flames spewed from his forehead, blocking your view of his eyes and illuminating his lengthened fangs. He seemed completely out of it, only responding in growls like he couldn't understand what was being said to him.

"Dawn is breaking. It's time for you two to go home." Mephisto hummed, seemingly unbothered.

"But you said-" Amaimon was quick to object, but was soon cut off by Mephisto. 

"Don't be unruly, little brother." The elder demon dropped the two others, now using one of his free hands to support you by the waist and the other to wield his umbrella. Using the umbrella to pop his top hat into the air, he began counting. " _Eins! Zwei! Drei!_ "

Out of nowhere, a ginormous clock appeared, blocking your view. Instead, you looked up at your father, the expression on his face one of complete confidence. How was he doing all of this? Was this the kind of power held by ones referred to as demons?

"Cuckoo Clock of Candy!" Not a moment later, Amaimon was swallowed by the ornate fixture, screaming the entire way in.

"MEPHISTO!"

Your father ignored the other demon's shouts, using his umbrella once more. "Abracadabra~"

And _poof_ , just as suddenly as it'd appeared, the clock vanished. You carefully reached up, catching the silken hat you knew your father treasured before it could fall too far.

"Thank you, _mein kleiner cat sídhe_." Mephisto smiled, taking the accessory and straightening it onto his head. "Now to deal with Mister Okumura, shall we?" 

Conveniently, Rin had chosen that moment to attack, allowing for the elder demon to grab the back of his shirt before vanishing the three of you in his ever-popular disappearing act together.


	19. Demons v. Angel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You really don't understand a lot of this "demon" or "exorcist" stuff, but what you do understand is that you've just made an enemy for life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope y'all enjoyed last chapter! I don't have a whole lot to say about this one atm, but more answers will be coming soon 👀👀👀
> 
> I wanna say a quick thanks to Perecia for letting me know the discord link expired, here's the new one if y'all wanna join ;w; 
> 
> https://discord.gg/EzRMABa
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

One moment you were in the woods, the next _poof!_ You were on one of the highest walkways of upper True Cross Academy. Mephisto tried to set you down gently, but you couldn't quite keep your legs from wobbling. Luckily, a pair of arms shot out to help you, much to your surprise. 

"Here, kid." The redheaded woman sent you a weak grin, tucking your arm over her shoulders.

Rin, all the meanwhile, was still spewing those blue flames, growling at the small group formed at the end of the walkway.

"Hi there. Long time no see, Angel." You looked up in the direction your father was speaking, spotting a man with flowing locks of blonde hair in luxurious clothing standing atop a nearby tower. Wow, and you thought Mephisto was flashy. The demon continued. "Congratulations on becoming Paladin."

"Shura, if what you found had anything to do with Satan, you were to exterminate it immediately." The newcomer ignored him, addressing the woman holding you up instead. "Wouldn't you say this blue flame spewing beast seems to fit that bill?"

Your father sheathed Rin's precious sword, the blue flames engulfing him vanishing immediately. The half-demon collapsed, only able to stay upright from the older demon's grip on his wrist. 

"Mephisto, you've finally shown your tail." The blonde stranger finally turned to the headmaster. "Word of your disloyalty has even reached the Grigori."

"I'm not showing my tail. What a rude thing to say to a gentleman." Mephisto huffed, tugging Rin forward, only to slap him in the face. The half-demon's eyes shot open, Rin catching his own balance immediately, unlike you. 

"The Grigori have ordered..." The man known to you as Angel hopped down from the tower and onto the walkway like it was nothing. Perhaps this man was a demon as well. You wouldn't be surprised if even _Belial_ of all people was a demon at this point. Angel shot forward, suddenly gripping Rin's neck in one hand while threatening to skewer the exwire with his oversized sword with the other. "..the death of Satan's bastard!"

Oh _Ghenna_ no.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!"  
You could feel the anger boiling in your veins as you moved without thinking. You didn't notice as everything in the immediate area, sans Mephisto, stilled for just a single moment, but, to the average person, it looked like you'd just teleported from where you were with Shura, to behind Angel. It wasn't much time at all, but it was enough for you to get over there and give the blonde man's ponytail a harsh tug before the paladin could do a thing about it.

Angel, clearly shocked, instantly turned his blade to you with speed you were surprised anyone in such heavy clothing could wield. 

" _Another_ nephilim? Is this one related to Satan as well?" The paladin eyed your father who held his hands up defensively.

"Of course not. Can't you see the resemblance~?" Though he smiled, it was easy to tell that Mephisto was unamused by the turn of events. "Though, I'd thank you kindly to unhand my daughter..."

"This is your kid?" Angel's eyes widened, trailing your figure a few times before laughing. "Ha ha! What a funny joke!"

"Let go of her!" Rin launched for the paladin, set on saving you, but was quickly stopped by Mephisto's umbrella being held in front of him.

Meanwhile, Angel picked up a call on what you assumed to be some sort of earpiece you couldn't see. 

"Yes. Understood." The blonde turned to face Mephisto. "That was a message from the Grigori. Mephisto is to undergo immediate questioning with these two halflings as evidence."

Before either of you could object, the paladin had both of you by the collars of your shirts, dragging you off towards the nearest doorway. You managed to break free fairly easily, but only because Angel had deemed you cooperative. 

As the exorcists shuffled to escort the exwires elsewhere, Rin shouted out to the group. "Is everyone all right!?"

To your surprise, instead of a grateful response for the show of concern, Suguro called back to him. "WHAT'S THE CHILD OF SATAN DOING AT A SCHOOL FOR EXORCISTS!?"

Rin was clearly taken aback, but not deterred. He turned to Shiemi next. "Shiemi...you're not hurt are you?"

Silence. The gardener only glared at the half-demon in return.

"What's the matter? You hurt somewhere?" He tried not to seem hurt, but you could hear his voice crack just a bit when calling out to her. Still, he received no answer.

"Rin..." You took the ravenette's hand into your own, giving it a comforting squeeze as you led him along with you. He didn't say anything, simply stumbling behind you for a bit before you entered the courthouse.

You and Rin walked side-by-side into the main courtroom of the Opera House Court, escorted by several exorcists including the paladin himself. The room was impressive, but gave you strange "Alice in Wonderland" vibes from the moment you stepped in. Not surprising considering this was essentially a whole new world to you and that these people, including your father, all sounded like raving lunatics in your opinion.

"Kneel." Angel forced you both to the floor, though much crueler in his treatment towards Rin. The paladin pierced the other half-demon to the floor with his sword in a move that you could see was hella painful for Rin from the look on his face. 

"What are you doing!? We came with you willingly!" You hissed, ready to pounce on anyone who'd cause your friend so much pain. 

"I don't want him flaring up in the courtroom. He'll heal." The paladin paid no more mind to you.

"(Y/n), it's okay. Please just listen." Rin smiled your way, though still clearly heavily wounded. "I don't want them hurting you. Especially not because you did something stupid for me..."

This...worried you. A lot. But, for now, you kept silent for his sake, giving him a determined nod in response. 

"Order! Have the accused take the stand." 

Your father, in turn, stood up at the large podium before the court, an air of confidence surrounding his entire presence. For someone on trial, he was awfully level-headed. 

"The court will now hear the case of Mephisto Pheles. Your interrogators will be myself and the current Paladin, Arthur Auguste Angel. The Grigori will adjudicate." A small man in a powdered wig's voice echoed throughout the room. You never thought you'd see the day anyone ever wore a powdered wig unironically, but today seemed to be a day of many firsts for you. The Chief Justice presented a monitor for his first speaking point, displaying an image of Rin bathed in blue flames, laying waste to the forest around him, though you weren't quite sure how anyone without enhanced vision was supposed to see that. You'd think these guys would have some sort of projector considering all the money they seemed to dump into decorating and hiring people like Mister Angel. The chief continued. "Sir Pheles, the boy shown here is the demon kneeling before us, is he not?" 

"Yes." Mephisto answered without a hint of hesitation. 

"Then, without further delay, I ask you: Is he the child of Satan?" You still didn't know who this Stan guy was, but he must've been a pretty big deal if everyone was freaking out over Rin being his kid.

"That he is. I won't hide it any longer." Mephisto answered, several murmurs resounding throughout the room. Ignoring this, he continued. "I have sealed his heart within the koma sword, allowing Shiro Fujimoto to raise him in secret until he was ready to assume his power."

"For what purpose, Sir Pheles?" A man dressed in a giant cone asked. What was it with these people and their atrocious taste in fashion? 

"To make him a weapon." Your heart dropped to your stomach at your father's words. You never knew he could be so...heartless.

"And what of the girl?" Angel sneered, clearly not pleased with the direction this trial was headed.

"What about her?" Sir Pheles raised a brow, turning to look Arthur in the eyes. "As I told you before, that would simply be my lovely daughter. Isn't she precious~?"

"You...you've actually sired a child!?" The wigged man was clearly taken aback, and not just him from the return of those murmurs.

"So, you're saying this half-human girl lives with the blood of a Baal running through her veins?" Another cone person spoke, this time a woman.

"Indeed."

"And what kind of scheme is she involved in?" Arthur scoffed, glaring at Mephisto's far-away form before meeting your eyes with the same gaze. "If the Okumura boy was born to be used by the Order as a weapon, what is the purpose of _this one's birth?_ "

The loud thudding of your heartbeat at that moment was almost enough to deafen you, but you strained your ears, preparing to cling onto each of the man you knew as your father's next words. 

"Not that it bears any relevance to this case, but the answer is boringly simple: _storge_." The headmaster you'd written off as heartless merely moments ago, suddenly managed to force his way back into your heart with one short phrase. He allowed the court to murmur for a second before continuing. "Ladies and gentlemen of the court, I ask you: if any one of us can learn to lust for money, glutton over fine foods, or envy those who are more fortunate; why can't a demon learn to love another living being, especially one of a familial bond?"

"Even if that was plausible, you think that the demon to set this first example is _you_?" Arthur couldn't contain his laughter, despite the serious subject.

"Indeed." Your father turned around, offering you a smile from the very top of the staircase towering above you. Something wasn't quite right about the expression, but you couldn't tell from where you were knelt. "If you don't believe me, why not ask _mein kleiner schatz_ herself?" 

"Papa..." You sniffled, shaking your head to prevent the tears threatening to spill from your eyes from allowing you to cry in a room full of strangers. There was no way you'd show any form of weakness in front of these _monsters_ who were treated you, your best friend, and your father as if you were total scum. 

"I have no doubt in my mind that my daughter could prove to be almost as valuable an asset to the Order as Rin Okumura." Mephisto turned back to the judges. Clearing his throat and smiling, the demon king spread his arms in presentation to court. "All of you gathered here today, make a wager with me!" 

The court was intrigued, the entire room's attention drawn to the demon king in the center of the room.

"Will these young nephilim become demon lords of Ghenna?" Sir Pheles then gestured to the pair of you, still kneeling below the podium as if you were the ones being tried. "...or will they become the Order's- Nay! Dare I say it, the saviors of Assiah!"

The court erupted into a chorus of voices, echoing off of the walls and certainly not doing any favors for your adjustment to your newly enhanced sense of hearing. The Chief Justice banged his gavel for order until the courtroom finally settled.

Meanwhile, Mephisto continued to speak. "Of course, one condition of this wager is that we'll have to wait a while to find out."

"Don't let this trickster fool you! Surely you have not forgotten what he is. Deception is what they excel at!" This Arthur guy was really starting to get on your nerves. "He conspired with Shiro Fujimoto to raise Satan's bastard son and a half-demon he claims to be his own daughter! He was plotting to overthrow the Order from within!"

You grit your teeth, grabbing Rin's arm in a failed effort to comfort both him and yourself. Various voices began shouting around you.

_"That's right!"_

_"He's out of his mind!"_

_"I demand you relieve Mephisto of duty!"_

"SHUT UP!" Rin pulled out of your grip, erupting into flames as he sat up on his knees. "Neither of us are demon lords or _saviors_!"

"Rin!" You sat up as well, following suit. 

"Someday, I'm gonna be the strongest exorcist alive!" Okumura growled, flames continuing to grow. "All of you better remember that!" 

"The strongest exorcist?" Arthur started chuckling. " _You're_ going to be Paladin?"

"Do all exorcists dress like you?" The ravenette asked, staring straight ahead.

"What?" Arthur withdrew his sword from the half-demon's ankle, holding it to the Okumura's throat instead.

"When I become Paladin, I won't be dressing like a fashion _reject_." Rin turned and shot a smirk Angel's way. You weren't expecting that. At all.

One moment your expression was grim, worried for what these people planned to do with the ones you cared about and the next....

It started out with a snort. Then a chuckle. Then suddenly, you were back on the floor, full out laughing, the sound bouncing throughout the room as tears came to the corners of your eyes. 

"You misunderstand..." Arthur's eyebrow twitched, the man refusing to look at you. "I had this outfit tailor made."

You sat up, calming yourself enough to be able to speak. 

"Damn, if they let someone both ugly _and_ blind be paladin, I'd say you've got a pretty good shot at the job, Chicken." You sent Angel a snarky grin. "Not to mention, anyone carrying a huge ass sword like that is clearly _overcompensating_."

You could hear your father failing to suppress his own chuckles from the top of the podium.

"Order! Order!" The Chief Justice began banging his gavel once more. "Stop it, Angel!"

"Demons are indeed our enemy, however, learning from our opponent has always been one of the strategies of the Order." Another cone person started speaking. "Let us put it to a vote whether we accept this wager. One condition is that these two pass the exorcist certification exam in six months."

The rest of the trial was fairly uneventful. The Grigori stated all of their conditions before ultimately releasing the three of you back into the academy's grounds. You still weren't sure who Stan was or why these people seemed to hate demons so much, but what you did know was that you had to become something called an exorcist within six months or else...

...Rin would be executed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter should be up soon!


	20. King of (Tea)Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You have a nice, long chat with your father over tea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I hope you're doing well! I don't have a whole lot to say this time, but after this, the endings'll start being posted and then: Part 2 👀👀👀
> 
> IIIII wanna know what everyone's favorite route is so far out of curiosity. At the moment there's Amaimon, Rin, Mephisto, and Shiemi with other characters to be added in the future. Feel free to comment below or just message me on discord to let me know 👌👌  
> 
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"There were other conditions, but the decision was generous." Your father explained, holding his umbrella over your head to shield you from the rain. The man was also kind enough to drape his coat over your shoulders to keep you warm, so you were well bundled before exiting the courthouse. Why you weren't just speaking indoors, you had no clue.

Following the trial, you found yourself and the rest of your small crew on top of the same walkway you'd almost fought Arthur Angel on mere hours ago. 

"Generous? But what can you do?" Shura asked, eyeing Mephisto. 

All of a sudden, Rin knelt to the ground, bowing before the redheaded woman. "Please Shura! Teach me how to use a sword!" 

"Well, your attitude _does_ appear to have improved." Shura looked down at the exwire, placing a hand on his head. "Alright. I'll do it."

"Excellent!" Mephisto grinned. "And while _you're_ training with Miss Kirigakure, I'll see to it that dear (Y/n) starts her own studies under the tutoring of the other Mister Okumura!" 

"Huh? Studies?" You turned to your father, stepping closer so you could both be at least a little underneath the umbrella. "Oh, for that exorcist thing, right."

"(Y/n), do you even know what an exorcist is?" Rin asked softly, brushing Shura's hand away.

"Nope, but a certain _someone_ is going to be filling me in as soon as we're home." You placed your hands to your hips, glaring at Mephisto. 

"Something tells me I'm in for a good scolding this time!" The demon king threw up his free hand in surrender and chuckled. "I won't keep you waiting any longer then. Miss Kirigakure, Mister Okumura, enjoy the rest of your evening."

"Seeya." You waved to the other two as your father placed a hand on your shoulder. The next moment, the two of you disappeared in a puff of pink smoke.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to that." You sighed, shrugging off the borrowed coat and handing it to Belial, who'd been waiting for your return. From the walkway, Mephisto had transported you both into the tea room, summoning the butler shortly after.

"After a few thousand years or so, you get used to it." The demon king shrugged, pulling out a seat at the table for you to take. "Now, my dear, I believe it's time I explain a few things."

You sat at the table for hours, Mephisto going through the basic rundown of exorcists, the Vatican, basic demonology, and the "Rin Okumura" situation. 

"So, Rin's the son of basically the most powerful and evil demon that exists. That checks out." You leaned back in your seat, knowing the posture wasn't necessarily ladylike, but not really minding that at the moment. "Did you really mean what you said about using him as a weapon though?"

"Unfortunately, it was the only answer I could give to prevent Mister Okumura's immediate execution." Mephisto rested his chin on top of his folded hands, answering your questions with endless patience. "Though, I do believe in fact that he could potentially defeat Father if he ever unleashes his true potential."

"I still think it's kinda weird you call him 'Father' even though he's not your real dad." You sighed, shifting in your seat. "But, then again, I wouldn't have thought you were _my_ birth father until yesterday. Not to mention that you're apparently King of Time."

"Yes, I know, but you have to understand, I did it for your protection." Mephisto offered you a saddened smile. "You've witnessed first-hand how the Vatican treats demons like us. If you'd known all of this before now, it would've risked them finding you and taking you away from me for interrogation or experimentation. And that, my dear, is a pain I simply wouldn't be able to bear!" 

So, he'd kept you away from the demonic side of this world...to protect you. It was oddly sweet and a good enough explanation to quickly quell your frustration with him.

You moved onto your next question. "What was the deal with the pocket watch? You said it was some kinda seal, right?" 

"Indeed. I used it as a means of sealing your demon heart, the most vulnerable, yet powerful, extension of your body. Speaking of..." Mephisto nodded, pulling out the once broken watch and placing it onto the table between you. You hesitantly picked it up, noting that the clock was now working and accurate to the current time. "Think of it as a conduit for the abilities you've inherited from my aspect. Push the clock hands forward and you should also move forward in time. Push them backwards and, well, I believe the explanation is fairly obvious."

Your eyes grew wide at the notion. That seemed like entirely too much power for one person to have. 

"You can also freeze time in your immediate surroundings using the button on the side." The demon king explained, watching your reactions with obvious amusement. "Of course, all of these abilities are _very_ limited since you have no formal training and closing the watch will dampen your power as well as help hide your more demonic features." 

"Are you planning to train me?" You asked, looking up from the watch.

"I would love to, Pumpkin, but I'm afraid your Papa is a very busy man. Even more so now that the Vatican is aware of Rin Okumura." Your father sighed, sending you a look of sympathy. "You're going to have to train under the watch of his younger brother, Yukio Okumura."

You stayed silent for a moment, closing the watch gently. Your more demonic features were greatly less exaggerated, the only notable features of yours now being your pointed ears and furry tail.

"Hey, pops, I'm gonna become an exorcist, alright?" You shoved the hand clock into your pocket, looking back up to your father with an expression of determination. "I don't care how nice that dude's hair, face, and swordsmanship skills are; I'll make that Angel guy take back anything bad he's ever said about a single one of us!"

"Oh ho ho, seems like _'that Angel guy'_ left quite an impression on you." Mephisto winked, a sly expression now painting his face. "First Okumura, now Angel; I'd always hoped you'd set your sights a bit higher, my dear."

"S-shut up!" Your face went cherry red at the implication.

"Honestly, I would've preferred Amaimon over either of those two." The demon king took a sip of his tea, freshly brewed by Belial.

"Oh yeah, what was his deal anyway?" Quickly changing the subject, you accepted a newly poured cup of your own, but didn't drink out of it quite yet. "Like, I get he's a demon king like you, but what was up with the whole 'wanting to marry me' thing?"

"Ah, when you were very young, Amaimon used to visit fairly often." The headmaster replied, setting down his cup. "He was truly there to update me on current events in Ghenna, however, he wound up spending more time with you than he did myself."

"Huh, weird." He was a odd dude. Childish, yet you could imagine wanting to hang out with him at a younger age. "How come he wanted to marry me though? And why don't I remember any of this?"

"You were young. It's only natural you'd forget such memories." Mephisto shrugged, though you had the feeling he knew more than what he was telling you. "It seems you'd apparently made some sort of agreement to wed during one such memory. Once Amaimon saw you as his, he didn't want to let go for anything." 

"It's a good thing Rin was there to save me then." You smiled, though there was no pleasantness behind it. "Especially after I was suddenly _dumped alone in the middle of the forest._ "

"You were never truly alone, Pumpkin, I promise!" The demon king rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I was there! I came and retrieved you as soon as you were in actual danger."

"Uh-huh, right." You rolled your eyes, standing up from your seat before pushing it in. "You're gonna have to make it up to me big-time, _Sir Pheles_."

"I wouldn't dare imagine anything less."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a link to the discord if you wanna join ^^
> 
> https://discord.gg/B6NutcW


	21. Ignored {Shiemi Ending 1}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You try and talk things out with Shiemi but...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here they are: three more endings 😤😤😤
> 
> This one is by far the shortest. Sorry Shiemi u-u
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy these, there's one more chapter after these before Part 1 is officially over and that'll probably go up during the weekend 👀👀
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

A day eventually passed and your training had officially begun. You spent what little time you had not studying on going out to explore the new area of the academy you now had access to, simply in awe of how you'd missed all of this the entirety of your life. 

During your outing, you couldn't help but lookout for a certain head of blonde hair, even if you knew it was unlikely you'd see her.

Shiemi hadn't spoken to you since that moment before the trial, and even then, she had been speaking to Rin, not you. You could only imagine she was upset with the two of you, but you weren't entirely sure why if you were honest.

Of all the people you would've expected to understand Rin and his situation, Shiemi was the one person you thought would accept him with open arms. You couldn't understand why it was that she reacted the way she did. It was so out of character for the soft, flower-loving girl that you just couldn't wrap your head around it.

The more you'd thought about it, the more you wanted answers.

That was how you found yourself in front of the house across the bridge. The large wooden door was unusually intimidating, but you didn't allow that to stop you from knocking after taking a deep breath.

After your first initial knock, you waited. You could hear the blood pumping through your veins in your ears as you continued to stand at the entrance. You waited about five minutes before knocking again. Maybe she just hadn't heard you first time? Surely she wasn't ignoring you on purpose.

You waited twice as long after the second knock. She could've been busy, unable to reach the door in a reasonable amount of time which is what you wanted to believe.

Unfortunately, after that culminated fifteen minutes, it was pretty apparent she wasn't going to answer. With a sigh, you backed away from the door, unwilling to hang around any longer like a creep. Your luck only worsened as it started to rain, drenching your once dry outfit and leaving you to trudge home miserably.

Your only thought was to wish you could see Shiemi smiling again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BAD END 2


	22. Instict {Rin Ending 1}

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The bulk of the notes is in Shiemi's chapter so if you want them, look there 👌👌
> 
> Iiii don't have much to say about this one, but I hope you enjoy!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

You took a day to let everything sink in. 

That time alone was spent meditating on whatever thoughts you had on your perspective of reality and studying more on demonology. You honestly hated the prospect of having to study outside of what was required for a simple degree, but you had a lot of studying to do if you wanted to catch up to the others anytime soon. Rin's life depended on you scoring a passing grade on that upcoming exam, you didn't have any time to whine or complain.

After you were sure your head wasn't gonna explode from looking at your father, Rin, or basically any person you'd ever met in your entire life, you finally left your room. 

The first place you went was the bell tower, wanting to test your new demonic abilities, while also potentially pissing off your dad, whom you were still a bit irritated with at the time.

Three hops was all it took to reach the top. You were sure you looked ridiculous, but you didn't really care if you were honest. The view from that height was incredible, allowing you to see almost the entirety of True Cross Academy Town from a single point. You'd have to bring a camera up there sometime or something.

It wasn't for another moment that you realized you weren't alone. Sitting on the opposite side of the bell tower was a dark figure you immediately recognized. "Rin..?"

The Okumura jumped out of his skin a little, clearly not having noticed when you'd joined him. "O-oh hey! It's been a while, huh?"

"Uh, yeah." You sat down next to him, not quite sure how to react to the other's presence either. Your legs hung off of the edge as you leaned on your arms for support. 

You didn't know what to say to him, which was fine because he clearly didn't know what to say to you either. The two of you sat in silence for a while, just staring ahead as the sun began to make it's descent over the city. 

Your eyes widened as you felt something warm brush up against your side. You looked down to see a certain black cat rubbing into you, bringing a soft smile to your lips. You reached down, giving a gentle scratch behind Kuro's ears. "I missed you too, buddy." 

_"Next time, come and visit more often, okay?"_

"Alri-" You swiftly sat up straight. "Wait, what!?"

"Oh yeah, you probably aren't used to the whole _'demon-to-demon telepathy'_ thing, huh?" Rin chuckled, finally breaking his brief bout of silence. 

"Yeah; no!" You gave a shove to the demon boy's shoulder. "So this is normal?"

"Only if you're part demon, I guess." The Okumura sighed, making your heart clench unnaturally. You hadn't meant to bring down his spirits.

In a swift action, you swung your legs up, crossing them in front of you as you face Rin and Kuro. You proceeded to then flip the cat gently onto his back, scratching at his belly in turn. "Good! Now he can tell me all of your secrets! Kuro, does Rin _really like biting into popsicles_ or does he do it around me just to be a dick?"

"Don't tell her Kuro! She won't like the answer!" Rin snorted, looking a lot better already. Kuro simply swatted at your hands playfully, purring too loudly to answer your question.

You and Okumura laughed, relaxing for what felt like the first time in forever. 

As your snickers died down, Rin looked away again, this time in shame more than anything.

"(Y/n), I'm so sorry. I got you dragged into this..." Your friend mumbled, looking down at the town below. "You're not hurt are you?"

"Huh? Rin, you didn't drag me into anything." You shook your head.

Was that really what he thought?

" From what I understand, the whole thing with me and Amaimon was bound to happen eventually. There was nothing you could've done to stop it." You explained, reaching over to lay a comforting hand on his shoulder. "And I'm fine. Papa said something about my nerves being fucked with by some kinda bug, but it feels like it's all better now."

Rin took a shaky breath, tears visibly welling in his eyes. You could see a fragile smile gracing his lips. 

"Ya know, since I'm new to this whole _half-demon_ thing, _sombody's_ gonna have to show me the ropes. I still don't know what to do with this thing." You raised your tail, showing it to Rin despite what your father had said before about manners. "It seems pretty useless to me."

Rin chuckled, holding up his own tail in turn. "I dunno, I think they're kinda cool."

"Oh yeah? That must be why you never get any dates; the ladies just haven't seen your secret weapon yet." You snorted, scooting closer towards the other nephilim. You weren't quite sure what had gotten into you, but all of a sudden, you were feeling...

_Coy._

Placing your hands to his chest, you looked up at his rapidly reddening face with an unusually coquettish expression on your own. "But _I_ know your secret you stud, you." 

You nuzzled your cheek to the Okumura's, clearly enacting on some demonic instinct neither of you were quite used to. Once you were satisfied, you pulled away, but couldn't seem to find it in yourself to move very far. In fact, you soon found yourself leaning in once again; this time placing your lips gently to Rin's own in a chaste kiss. 

It didn't last very long. Only a few seconds passed from when you touched lips to when you opened the eyes you didn't remember closing, but it was long enough to bring a cherry glow to the cheeks of both you and the boy in front of you.

The tension was unbearable. The two of you simply stared at each other as if some sort of dam was going to burst if either of you made any sudden movements.

"I...better get going. Papa's got some more things he wants to teach me before I start training with your bro..." You slowly leaned back, unable to tear your eyes from Rin's face for a solid minute before you stood. As you hopped off of the tower, Rin could only find it in himself to wave mutely at your retreating figure until you were out of sight completely.

Kuro hopped on the exwire's shoulder, ignoring how his master was currently frozen in place. The cat gave a gentle sniff to Rin's cheek, purring audibly in response. "Wow, Rin! Your mate sure smells pretty!"

"Yeah..." A soft smile paired with a lovestruck gaze painted the Okumura's face. Though, the expression soon fell as he registered his familiar's words. "Wait, don't tell me you're trying to sell me this whole 'mate' crap too!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NORMAL END 1


	23. Always {Mephisto Ending 1}

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The longest ending so far 👌👌
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

It'd been a few days since the trial and, ever since, you'd been giving your father the cold shoulder. 

Whereas you'd normally speak to him several times a day, you now avoided him at nearly all costs. You skipped meals if Belial summoned you to eat in the dining room, avoided the manor by sleeping over at the Okumuras' private dorm building, and even changed the lock screen on your phone from that precious photo of the two of you together to something different entirely. You knew you couldn't avoid him forever, but the overly rebellious part of you still wanted to try.

Sir Pheles, however, wasn't one to be ignored.

"Oh great. Rain." You sighed, suddenly wishing you'd worn a jacket with a hood today. You were on your way to Rin's dorm from the convenience store, having purchased a light snack when, all of a sudden, rain began drizzling from the sky. "Damn. If this keeps up, I won't make it back before the chicken's brother locks the dorm's doors for the night."

You started to pick up the pace, a dangerous effort, when the roads were so slick. You learned that lesson the hard way, slipping not long after and falling flat on your face.

"Ouch!" You rubbed at your forehead, instantly grateful for your newly gained healing ability. You snorted. "If only it could heal my damaged dignity."

You laid on the ground for a few moments, honestly debating the advantages of just sleeping on the road for the night, when suddenly, a pair of white paws came into your view. You looked up, surprised to be face to face with a strange dog you'd never seen in your life before.

It was white, a furry ivory that showed off it's purebred, well-groomed coat with pride. It also wore an oddly familiar scarf you couldn't quite recognize around its neck, a pink one with polka dots that suited it quite well.

"You lost, bud?" You asked, despite the fact there was no way the dog would ever respond. Instead, in response you received a blank, clueless stare. "...I'll take that as a yes."

You hopped to your feet, brushing away any excess gravel that might've been clinging to your legs. Luckily, any scrapes or other injuries you might've gained in your fall were already better, leaving you sopping wet, but still in peak condition.

"Let's get outta this rain. Looks like it's about to start pouring hard." You looked up to the sky, watching as the grey clouds blackened. You weren't paying attention at all, which gave the odd dog the perfect opportunity to snatch the snack you'd just purchased and take off running. "Wh- Hey!" 

You immediately sprinted after it, not just to regain your stolen treat, but to make sure the small dog didn't get hit by a car or anything while it was so dark out. You eventually followed it down one of many walkways, eventually catching up to it where it'd stopped underneath a bridge.

"You run pretty fast for a little guy. Ever consider joining track?" You chuckled, catching your breath much quicker than you would've if you'd still been completely human. The dog sat, bag still grasped in it's mouth, gazing at you expectantly. Did it want you to join it? 

Whatever it wanted, you sat down across from the little guy, ringing out the locks of your hair that'd been soaked in the rain. Now that you thought about it, it'd been a while since your last haircut. Your father usually insisted on cutting it himself, putting his own flair on whatever you wanted, be it long and wavy or incredibly short and shaven. 

You subconsciously sighed at the memory of Mephisto, remembering why you were avoiding him even if you didn't want to think about it right then and there. Your new fluffy friend approached slowly, dropping its stolen goods into your lap. 

"Thanks." You giggled softly, reaching to pat the dog's head and finding it's fur incredibly soft. The dog then sat in front if you once again, this time tilting it's head inquisitively. You guessed it wanted to know what was wrong, or at least that's what you chose to believe. "I s'pose if there's anyone I should be able talk about this with, a random dog I found on the street should be it. Don't go telling people about this though; it'll ruin my 'tough guy' image."

If you'd thought such a creature capable, you could've sworn you saw it roll its eyes.

"It's not that I don't wanna see him; I actually kinda miss him. It's weird not having him close to weeb out about some new anime or watch him parade himself around like the 'perfect gentleman.'" You snorted, fondly remembering the headmaster's past antics from before you'd changed. From before... _he'd_ changed..."Did he even really change at all, though? Maybe that's what I'm really afraid of finding out..."

Had he ever really cared about you like he'd claimed to for so many years? If he did, why would he have just _let_ a dangerous demon try and spirit you away out of nowhere? He'd said you weren't really in any danger, but was that really true?

_Was anything he'd ever said to you really true?_

You felt a trail of cool wetness slide down your cheek and immediately looked up to find whatever hole or crack in the bridge it'd dripped down from. However, even as hard as you looked, you couldn't find a single flaw in the structure's integrity. You lifted a hand to touch the offending foreign substance, only to be mortified at the realization it was a tear.

That's when the dam had burst. More tears blurred your vision, flowing silently down your cheeks without allowing you any control over the outburst. You slowly tucked your head into your knees and began crying to yourself.

You cried and cried, not sure if you'd be able to stop even if you wanted to. Was this normal? Were demons supposed to be able to...feel?

_"Why can't a demon learn to love another living being?"_

The explanation Mephisto had given for why you'd been brought into creation rung through your ears as you continued to wail into your legs. Was what he'd said...really true?

_"My dear, I can think of no truer statement in all my years of living."_

Though out of context, you couldn't help but think of that particular instance as well; your time with him beginning to bleed together in all the happy moments you shared as, not just demon and mortal, but a _family._

Your sobs softened into sniffles as you pulled your head away from your knees. 

You wanted to believe him- to believe IN him. Once you'd settled that, every worry you'd held in your heart seemed to melt away.

"Papa..." You smiled softly, ignoring to dizziness in your head as well as your flushed cheeks as you shut your eyes. A moment later, you collapsed to the ground, laying underneath that bridge with no fear of the elements.

"You called, and thus, I am here~" Sir Pheles quickly shed his disguise, the dog from before now the very man you'd been speaking of. The demon king wasted no time lifting you up into his arms, pressing his forehead to your own as you laid unconscious. "Looks like someone's caught a fever. Seems as if your newly formed demonic immune system isn't enough to prevent stress-induced illness."

Removing using one hand to remove his cape with finesse you would've been impressed with had you been conscious, he draped it like a blanket over your shivering form. 

"Let's go home, _mäuschen_." 

You woke up later, surprised to find yourself in your bedroom at the manor. You were now wearing fresh pajamas with a wet cloth draped over your forehead. 

You remembered falling asleep under that bridge so...how were you here?

Looking around, you noticed your room was filled with quite a few more stuffed animals than it had been when you'd left. Your father must've been stocking up on them since you'd started staying at the Okumura's. You remembered how he'd used to shower you with gifts like this any time you were sick as a kid, mostly as insurance you'd actually stay in bed without Belial having to, metaphorically, wrestle you into staying put. 

A soft knocking came from the door. You recognized the specific knock from years of listening out for it daily. "Come in, Papa." 

The door opened a lot more gently than you expected, your father smiling softly as he entered the room. "Good morning, Pumpkin."

Your heart ached at the tenderness of his tone, tears nearly threatening to spill again as you realized just how much you really missed this big purple dummy. You sat up and swallowed a huge gulp of spit before offering the man a bright smile of your own in turn. " _Guten morgen_ , Papa." 

Mephisto's smile grew as he then decided to approach you, cupping your cheek in one of his hands while using the other to pull out a pink handkerchief to wipe your face with. "Now, now, _schatz_ , there's no need to cry."

You opened your mouth to object and tell him you _weren't_ crying, but soon realized that you actually indeed were. Instead, you stayed quiet, allowing your tears to be dried until he was finished. "Hey, Papa..?"

"Hmm?" Mephisto tossed up the hanky, the fabric disappearing in a puff of pink smoke.

"Whenever Amaimon would touch me, my chest would burn like the skin wanted to melt itself off..." You touched your hand to your clothed collarbone, remembering the sensation contact with the green-haired demon had brought you. You then reached up with your free hand, brushing strands of lilac bangs from the headmaster's face as if to make a point. "...At first, I thought it was a demon thing, but, when I touch you, I don't feel any pain at all..."

In fact, the exact opposite could be said. Whenever you'd made contact with Mephisto, your head just seemed to forget any worry or concern you'd had on your mind at the moment. You felt a warm comfort blanket over you, like the two of you being near was somehow _right_.

Mephisto chuckled, brushing your hand away and standing straight once more. "That would be because you'd _changed your mind_ about marrying Amaimon before he'd marked you as his bride."

"Huh?" 

"I wasn't there for the proposal, however, I remember the day you cried for _hours_ after realizing that marrying Amaimon meant living in Ghenna and leaving your precious papa here in Assiah, not that you knew what either of those places were at the time." The headmaster gave a dreamy sight, as if it was a pleasant memory and not a reminder of the day he ignored his paperwork in favor of trying to pry you off of his then tear-stained suit. "You swore off of ever marrying and decided to live here with your papa forever~"

Cue the deadpan. "Why do I feel like that second half's a little exaggerated?"

Mephisto simply shrugged, an innocent expression on his face despite the fact you knew better. You couldn't help but chuckle a bit at his antics.

You slowly laid back down after a minute or two, keeping your eyes open with all the strength you could muster from your droopy eyelids. Curse this perfectly comfortable bed. "Papa..."

"Hm?" Mephisto raised a brow as he tucked you in, just like he would when you were a child. 

"All those people...the 'Vatican'...they treat you pretty poorly even though you work for them..." You yawned, now warm and even sleepier than a moment ago.

"I told you, my dear, humankind is cruel to demons like us, simply for our species." The King of Time let out a wistful sigh, shaking his head, almost as if he were lecturing you. "Not that many demons are much better, mind you."

"Then...why are we helping them?" You just couldn't wrap your head around why your father would stick around so long with people who clearly didn't give a fuck about him. Was there something he needed from them?

"Because, Pumpkin, don't you want to prove them wrong?" That didn't seem like something your father would normally say, but you were honestly too tired to question it at the time. 

"Papa..." With what strength you had left, you leaned up and kissed the demon king's forehead, allowing your eyes to shut by the time you fell back onto the bed. "Don't worry, I'm here for you, okay? And I always will be..." 

Mephisto's brows raised, but only for a moment. He simply smiled although you couldn't see it with your eyes shut. "Of course, _schatz_."

You let slumber take hold of you again, knowing your training was to begin the moment you woke up again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GOOD END 1


	24. Gratitude ~Part I Epilogue~

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Your father gifts you something special...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HERE IT IIISSS BOOOIIIS!!! Part 1 is over 😭😭😭
> 
> I've decided to just add the other parts onto this one and keep it in one big book for now instead of splitting it. On that note, y'all remember when this was only supposed to be 7 chapters long? *sweats*
> 
> Anyway, I hope you all enjoy! This epilogue's a little short, but the next chapter should be up soon ^^
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

You stood in front of your father's desk, wondering what he'd so suddenly summoned you in for. He was being weirdly vague again, making you almost anxious for him to get to the point. Eventually, he cleared his throat.

"Now, Pumpkin, I know you and I haven't been on the best of terms lately..." That was an understatement. The rollercoaster that called itself the relationship between you and the man known as Mephisto Pheles had certainly gone through a few twists and turns recently. Though, if you'd already reconciled, you'd've felt less of a twinge of unease pang through your heart at the statement. Mephisto simply continued. "...sooo, as a sign of good grace, I've decided to allow you a privilege I'd previously rejected whenever you'd brought it up."

What? The look of confusion on your face said it all.

"Remember how you'd always wanted a puppy? Well..." No way. You couldn't believe it! Did the Demon King of Time finally concede on your pleas to get a dog? You foolishly allowed yourself to get your hopes up as the man lifted a small, pink handkerchief off of his desk in a grand revelation. "Ta-da!"

It was...a hamster.

"Geez pops, this is sure one weird looking dog." You drawled, watching the tiny beast stand itself on two legs.

"Now, now, dear. Think of it as a practice pet." Mephisto seemed unfazed, continuing to smile despite your unenthusiastic expression.

"A 'practice pet', huh?" You straightened up, not breaking eye-contact with the rodent for a single moment. Creepy. "What do these things eat anyway?"

_"Candy!"_ You froze, hearing a familiar voice invade your brain. 

"Papa..."

"Yes my little _cat síde?_ "

"Why is the _Demon King of Earth_ currently _a hamster?"_

Your father chuckled, sitting down in his plush leather seat before beginning his explanation.

"Unfortunately, Amaimon here has managed to use up quite a bit of his energy in a tantrum he'd had after I'd imprisoned him." Mephisto gestured to the tiny green hamster. "He's stuck in this form to conserve power, so he's stuck like this for the moment. In the meantime, I need someone to watch over him."

"And you thought I was a good pick for the job _because...?_ " You poked at the green demon king's furry stomach with your pointer finger.

"He likes you!" The headmaster's point was only proven as Amaimon grabbed your finger with two tiny paws, rubbing his chunky cheeks against it. "See? Had you been anyone else, he would've bitten your entire finger off just now."

You hated to agree, but you knew it was the truth. Amaimon wasn't the type of guy who played nicely with others, so your father probably had little choice in the matter himself.

As you allowed Amaimon to crawl into your hand, you remembered all of the pain the green-haired demon had brought you these last few days: kidnapping you, attempting to battle your best friend to the death (twice apparently), putting a bug underneath your skin- that last one was more than enough reason for you to simply chuck this small, adorable rodent into the nearest dumpster and leave it- but, you had to admit, you were ultimately grateful towards the King of Earth. After all, if it hadn't been for him, you might've never discovered the truth of your heritage, continuing to live blissfully unaware as the people around you struggled so much on the daily.

You supposed that, in the end, you owed him a debt of gratitude, one that could be repaid by giving him a second chance. You just had to teach him how to not be sooo...evil? 

"Alright, I'll do it." You finally conceded, much to your father's joy.

"Excellent! I knew I could count on you, Pumpkin!" The headmaster made a show of clasping his hands together in glee.

_"I don't see how this was even a debate."_ Amaimon's voice rang through your head again. Man, you were calling it that moment: there was no way you were ever getting used to this 'demon telepathy' thing. Hearing your own thoughts on the regular was jarring enough as it was, you didn't need this psycho's voice popping in at random to add to that mix. On the flip side, the hamster seemed quite content in your palm. _"Of course my wife would be the one to serve by my side."_

After a moment of silence and filled by twin deadpans, curtesy of you and Mephisto, you spoke up again.

"Is it too late to get that dog?" You rubbed your temples, feeling a headache starting to form. 

_"Big brother..."_ Amaimon turned to Mephisto, though still keeping put in your palm. "Why doesn't she seem happy? As my wife, she should be overjoyed to be sharing this time with me."

"Well, first off, I'm _not_ your damn wi-" 

"Now, now, Pumpkin. A lady doesn't speak with her mouth full." Mephisto cut you off before you could finish your sentence. Suddenly, you felt soft, fluffy marshmallows fill your mouth out of nowhere. "No need to worry, Amaimon. She'll adjust soon enough."

You pouted through the sugary treats stuffed into your cheeks, making sure the almighty King of Time watched as you slowly spit the entire glob of marshmallows onto a paper on his desk before you silently strode out of the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PART 1 END


	25. Property Damage ~Part II Prologue~

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You could tell from the very beginning that this would be a looooong day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeey! Here's the beginning of Kyoto, hope you all enjoy!!
> 
> Just a heads up: the Kyoto portion prooooobably won't wind up nearly as long as Part 1, atm its only about 14 chapters planned out, but then again, Part 1 was only supposed to be 7 chapters originally *sweats*
> 
> Next chapter will be out pretty soon, and I can't wait 😤😤😤
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

You groaned, tossing a nearby pillow over your face to shield your ears from the awful blare of your alarm clock. Six am was way too early to be up, especially during summer break. 

You apparently weren't the only one annoyed by the loud cacophony gracing your ears as, in the next moment, you shot up it pain, having been socked by a certain fist-sized rodent's intentional cannonball into your stomach.

"GAH!" You clutched your stomach in pain, glaring at the green hamster looking up at you under the guise of innocence. "Amaimon, what the hell!?" 

_"That machine is annoying. Get rid of it."_ The demon king stated as fact. 

"Ya know what? No. _But that's a mood_." You shut off the alarm, looking at Amaimon for a straight minute in silence before dropping the pillow you'd been using for your face on top of him. Sure he was Demon of Earth, but, at the moment, he was also a hamster; what was he gonna do?

You took the opportunity while he was distracted to strip and throw on a comfortable outfit, readying yourself for the day. Once you were done, Amaimon took it upon himself to join you, climbing up your body and into your satchel as you were walking. 

"Remember what I told you last night, alright?" You made your way out of the mansion, addressing the green hamster. "No speaking around anyone other than me. If Rin heard you, it could cause a problem."

 _"Yes, big brother told me that as well."_ Amaimon's head poked up from the gap the front flap allowed. _"He also said that you'd be cranky for quite some time."_

"He was right about that." You sighed, stepping out of the house.

You entered the batting cage area, waving hello to Rin and Yukio. 

"Yo! Chicken! Teach!" You grinned. The two ignored your nicknames, not that you minded. Instead, you were interested in the bat the older twin held in his hands. "I didn't peg you for the baseball type. You up for a round?"

"Huh? Sure!" Rin nodded, seemingly happy at your interest for whatever reason.

"Sweet!" You grabbed a bat from the rack. "Loser buys winner monja?"

"You're on!" 

The results were close, you'd almost ended in a tie, however, you managed to pull through as the victor in the end. It was no wonder why; you were captain of the baseball team, after all. Sometimes Rin forgot kinda these things since everyone was always so focused on exorcising demons and stuff.

Wiping the sweat from your brow, you shot the exwire a smile. "You didn't do too bad for a beginner. You've gotta work on your posture, though."

"Looks like you're all having fun." Shura strutted in at that moment, approaching the cage you and Rin were using. "Foolishly relaxed while having fun, _Rin_."

"Shura!" Rin turned to his teacher.

"With your tail out, you look just like a monkey!" Shura chuckled, causing you to subconsciously bring a hand over your clothes to where you'd hidden your own. You were suddenly glad you'd decided to take Mephisto's advice in the matter rather than follow Rin's straightforward approach to presenting demonic features. Shura tossed Rin the bag she was carrying. "Just like a moron. The perfect look for you!"

"It's constraining to hide it, so I feel better this way." The raven-haired half-demon pouted. 

You placed a hand on his shoulder to comfort him. "It's okay, I don't really see the point in it either to be honest." 

"Yeah? Then why'd you hide yours?" Shura raised a brow, scrutinizing you under her gaze. She didn't seem to need you to respond, somehow getting an answer simply from your face. "Oh right, I forgot; you're a total _daddy's girl_ , aren't you?"

You huffed, deciding not to dignify the childish statement with a response.

"Whatever, what's with the bag?" Rin peeked inside of the sack, pulling out a candle from inside. "Candles?"

"You need to master your flames." Shura raised her pointer and middle fingers simultaneously. "Line up three of these then light up the ones on the sides, but not the middle." 

"Right!" Rin plopped himself down on the floor, lining up the candles as instructed. You watched as he struggled until finally his surroundings went up in azure flames, completely melting the wax spires. 

"I said light, not melt." Shura put Rin down as he continuously failed to light the candles in the proper fashion. Eventually, she approached him. "This is about control. Do three sets every day until you can do it and pick your nose at the same time."

"Did you really have to word it like that?" Yukio sighed, starting to pick up some of the baseballs from your competition with Rin. You decided to go help him while Rin sorted out his training regimen with Shura. 

"Uh, here." You passed him the balls you'd collected for him to reinsert them into the machine. He simply nodded to you in acknowledgment. You weren't sure if it was just the younger twin's personality, but the two of you always seemed so awkward around each other. Because of this, you tried to never be alone with him if you could help it. Unfortunately, since you've been training with him in firearms, alone time with him was inevitable.

"Wimpy four-eyes~?" Shura sang, entering the cage. "How about a rematch?"

"No, thank you."

"You're no fun." Despite Yukio's response, Shura picked up a bat and started stating terms of the match.

You decided to leave them to it, joining Rin in his practice. You sat next to him, crossing your legs as you watched him struggle.

"(Y/n)..." The other half-demon seemed surprised you were so quick to keep him company. "Are you sure you're okay with sitting so close?"

"Hm? Of course." You picked up a candle, looking it over in one hand. "Why shouldn't I be? You got cooties or somethin'?"

"No, no, it's just..." Rin melted another candle as he spoke. He was failing, but he kept trying despite his lack of success. "Everybody else is making a big deal about my flames, but you don't seem even a little scared."

"Well, duh. It's cuz I'm not." You tossed your candle up in the air, kinda tempted to buy some scented ones to see how they'd smell being lit by blue flames. Would they be any different? This experiment had potential. "Maybe it's because I got to all this stuff late or cuz I'm _halbdämon_ like you, but I also know you better than you think, Chicken. You couldn't burn me with those flames of yours even if you really wanted to."

Your statement surprised Rin, a light tinge of pink coming to his cheeks as he gazed at your distracted form. Unfortunately, you weren't the only one distracted. Rin's flames subconsciously flared as he looked your way, the fire spewing over to where Shura and Yukio were still invested in their competition. You watched as the pair of teachers' clothes burnt away until Rin threw his hands up over your eyes, preventing your eyesight from being further tarnished. 

After the two senior exorcists were clothed at least partly using pieces of Rin's uniform, you and Rin got to putting out the cinders of the fire. You silently mourned the loss of a perfectly nice batting cage, making note to tell your father you were no way related to this incident the moment you got home.

You looked over to Rin who seemed to be pouting over the incident more than anything. He was now clad in only his boxers, making you want to look away, however, your eyes couldn't help but wander to a certain feature of his ensemble.

"Bruh, why are you still wearing your tie?" You snorted, covering your mouth with a hand as you giggled.

"It makes me feel less naked!" Rin glared, protesting as you took the tie from over his head. "Hey!"

"Well, it makes you _look_ like a doofus. Here." You tossed the other half-demon the sweatshirt you'd been wearing. "This way you're _actually_ less naked. Make sure you get it back to me soon."

Rin caught the jacket with one hand, shoving it over his head before looking at it more closely. "Hey, this is mine! How many of my sweatshirts do you have!?"

Before you could get into it, Shura whistled from a short distance away to get your attention. "Yo! Flame-brain! Princess! We're leaving!"

Huh?


	26. True Cross Nine-Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You get a chance to test your new abilities at the expense of an innocent bystander. Fun!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I guess there's gonna be scheduled updates now lmao  
> I'll probably start updating every Monday like I've been doing unless y'all have another day you'd prefer. 
> 
> I also wanna take a moment to shoutout the amazing work of salty_limeade 💖💖   
> They have an awesome Amaimon/Reader oneshot that you should definitely check out whenever you're through with this chapter. It's really good and the humor is on point 😤😤😤
> 
> I'm kinda thinking of maybe doing a Q&A chapter where y'all can ask the characters stuff like the author does in the manga cuz that seems fun, so if you've got an opinion on that lemme know. It would be posted along with the scheduled chapter for the week 👌👌👌
> 
> Anyway, please enjoy the chapter! 
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

"Sorry we're late. I'm intermediate exorcist first class, Yukio Okumura."

Your group arrived on the scene within the hour. The exorcists there seemed to be having trouble keeping the crowd dispersed with most on duty tending to the injured. 

"Shura Kirigakure, senior first class." As you each began to introduce yourselves, a timid looking man approached to survey you all.

"I'm Rin Okumura! An exwire!" The other half-demon grinned. "Here to save the day!"

"You!? Aren't you dangerous!?" The older gentleman seemed like he was ready to have a heart attack at the prospect of having Rin on the scene. 

"You don't even know him, gramps. He's a good guy, don't worry." You simultaneously scolded and reassured. You didn't have any form of formal identification since you weren't even an exwire yet, but you proceeded to introduce yourself. "(Y/n) Pheles."

You stared using Pheles as your last name around the Knights of True Cross in order to avoid confusion. It was an adjustment at first, but you'd slowly gotten used to it.

"O-oh, Miss Pheles! It's a-an honor!" Despite his words, the elder only seemed to sweat more. "I'm Saburota Todo, senior exorcist first class and warden of the Deep Keep."

"You must be the one in charge then." Shura was awfully lax for someone so near a crime scene. 

"Yes, though I'm afraid I've been doing a miserable job. The Left Eye of the Impure King has been stolen from the Deep Keep!" 

"Huh? How'd that happen?" The redheaded woman was curious now. As were you. Just what was this eye thing they were talking about?

"We're not sure! I pursued the intruder; a masked man who was clearly the culprit, but he used a child as a shield!" Todo seemed like he was ready to burst into tears at any moment. You watched as he held his face in his hands, almost feeling sorry for the guy. "He's holed up in that building now. The gas has affected over thirty-one people and we don't have enough doctors. This is an absolute failure!" 

"Is the kid still in there too!?" You started heading for the doors to the nearby building, no further questions asked. For some reason, you began sneezing almost uncontrollably as soon as you got closer, but this didn't deter you. Through your sniffles, you continued. "We need to hurry!"

"Not so fast, Princess." Shura grabbed the back of your collar, preventing you from going forward. "You and Flame-Brain are stayin' with me."

"What? But that kid could die in there!" Rin protested, obviously on your side.

"We can't save everyone. Sometimes there's nothing we can do." Yukio spoke up this time, using that condescending tone of his you personally hated. You couldn't imagine what it was like for Rin.

"You shouldn't give up before you even try!" The older Okumura glared, ready to continue arguing until Shura took his collar in her free hand.

"That's enough you two. We're staying here, the answer's final." The beautiful exorcist dragged the both of you further from the scene, an impressive feat considering you both possessed demonic strength. 

"Hey! Leggo of me!" Both you and the exwire struggled for a minute before an idea came to mind. 

"Rin!" The moment you called out for him, the two of you locked gazes before nodding in turn. You hastily pulled out your watch from your pants pocket, fumbling until you were able to hold it steady and pop it open. You held in a deep breath as you pushed the button on the side, the air around you stilling as total silence was the only thing heard in your immediate surroundings. Everything _stopped_.

You let out a breath shakily before getting to work. You still weren't quite used to these new _timey-wimey_ abilities of yours. You'd practiced a little, but you'd gotten so busy with your other exorcist-related studies, you, _ironically_ , had issues finding the time, so they weren't much to write home about quite yet.

There wasn't much time to worry about that now, however. Based off your most recent experiments, you figured you probably had about five minutes before time would continue its natural flow, so you couldn't waste a single second. You hastily loosened Shura's grip on yourself and then Rin, moving him out of the way for the time being. 

You then took a random man from the crowd, one of similar stature to the Okumura and replacing Shura's grasp with him. You knew it wasn't nice, but it seemed necessary to shove an apple in his mouth, if only to give yourself a few more seconds before the redhead figured out your trick. Hopefully it would be enough time for Rin to do what he needed to.

Reluctantly, you put yourself back into Shura's clutch, just as time began once more. 

The man you'd basically kidnapped immediately started to squirm and protest around the fruit in his mouth. 

"No more buts, Rin. You two are gonna stay put right here, got it?" Shura released the two of you, turning to face you within the next moment. Needless to say, she noticed Rin had given her the slip. "What the hell!? I swear when I find that kid-!"

"What's the matter, Miss Kirigakure? Lose something?" A familiar voice came from out of the blue, just as the man you'd used as a replacement Rin ran away. You looked up at Mephisto who'd placed a hand on your shoulder as he stood by your side. 

"Why, not at all~!" Shura smiled, her honey-sweet tone clearly fake. "I was simply wondering what took you so long to get here!"

"I'm afraid I had some paperwork to attend to." The older demon shrugged, pulling two popsicles from out of nowhere. He held one out for you to take, however, leaned in close as you went to grab it. "But as soon as I sensed my lovely daughter making a show of her new abilities, I simply couldn't wait to join you any longer."

A hot blush of embarrassment took over your face as you popped open the popsicle the headmaster relinquished. _Of course_ he'd be able to tell whenever you were fucking with time. You decided to change the subject. "Is this eyeball thing really so important you need to put off your work again?"

"Indeed. It's an important relic to the history of exorcists." Mephisto bit into his popsicle, much to your chagrin. 

"Papa! You shouldn't bite into those!" You scolded, immediately forgetting about the eye. "It's bad for your teeth!"

"I'm so glad my adorable daughter is worried about me!" The elder demon squished your cheeks, muffling any further protests from you. Despite how it seemed, you could tell he was just doing this to prevent you from nagging him any further.

"Ugh. Don't you guys have to be gross somewhere else?" Shura rolled her eyes at the display.

"Not 'till four." You hummed through squished cheeks.

"Oh look, seems they've returned." Mephisto released you, approaching the Okumura boys who'd just exited the building. "Truly excellent work!"

"Mephisto!?" Rin seemed surprised as the headmaster came closer, you and Shura in tow. 

"Though, it seems it was just a diversion." Despite his words, Mephisto continued to smile. "It seems the _real_ left eye has actually been stolen."

"My familiar's already tracking it." Shura piped in. When did they figure all this stuff out!? You could've sworn you were with them the whole time!

"I thought something was fishy about Todo, so I looked into it and my suspicions proved correct." Mephisto took another bite of his popsicle, causing you to sigh in defeat. "And there's more. We don't have all the details, but an attempt was also made for the Right Eye.

" _Isn't that just awful?_ "


	27. Off the Rails

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On the train to Kyoto, you realize Rin's situation might be worse than you'd thought...and that you were prepared to fight every single exwire in your class if they hurt him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy holidays everyone! 
> 
> I don't have a whole lot to say this time, but I hope you all enjoy the chapter! This one's a little longer than usual ^^
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Kyoto: here I come!" You tossed open your suitcase, ready to fill it with things needed for your trip. 

You were more excited than ever, throwing in all possible combinations of clothing into your luggage in preparation of what you might need. You had no clue what Kyoto was like in the least, so you figured it'd be better to be over prepared than under.

You sat on the floor of your bedroom, biting the tip of your nail. Clothing wasn't your only concern. You'd never really left True Cross Academy Town before, save for those short visits you'd made to the beach, and this mission was set to take place for at least a week. You'd never been away from your father for that long before. You didn't wanna be a baby or anything, but the thought of being separated for so long from someone you were used to seeing nearly every day of your life since birth was just a little _jarring_.

You attention was pulled away from your thoughts as you spotted a certain green menace plop a giant bag of candy into your suitcase.

"Excuse me, kind King of Earth." You strained a smile in his direction. "But I don't remember offering you space in my suitcase."

" _You're my wife, what belongs to you belongs to me._ " Amaimon stated as fact. 

"First off, we're not married. Second, Papa's gonna kill me if he finds out I packed a shit ton of sweets like this." Otherwise, you really wouldn't have much of a problem packing as much sugar as the King of Earth wanted. After all, that meant you'd have a constant supply of candy your entire trip, which was always a good thing. 

On the other hand, it felt kinda good refusing Amaimon's request. He'd be at least a little upset and while you might be giving him a second chance, that didn't change the fact that the motherfucker put an actual bug larva underneath your skin. Yes, you were still salty.

You lifted the bag of sweets with one hand, plopping it out of your suitcase with a blank expression on your face. If he wanted a fight, you'd give him one.

A few hours later, you tugged a candy-filled suitcase through the train station. _How in Assiah did you manage to lose an argument to a friggin' hamster!?_

You let out a sigh. If your father ever found out, at least you could push the blame onto Amaimon. Or video games. Parents liked to blame video games for all their kid's problems, right?

"You okay?" Rin looked over to you in concern from where he was walking next to you.

"Yup. Never better." You showed off a weak grin, contrasting the hostile look Amaimon was sending the other half-demon in comparison, though, it probably looked pretty silly with the hamster perched on your shoulder.

"Hey! That's your new pet, right?" Rin ignored the glare the tiny rodent was giving him, leaning in to get a closer look. "What's his name again?"

"It's, uh..." While you hated to keep a secret from your best bro, you somehow doubted this was a good time to tell him you were currently harboring one of his greatest enemies on your shoulder. You didn't need time-powers to foresee how that conversation would go.

_'Hey buddy! Remember the swamp goth that kidnapped me in the woods, made out with me in front of you then tried to kick your ass, outing you as the son of evil incarnate to your friends and the organization that wants to execute you? Well, I'm taking care of him so he can regain his power and hopefully become an ally and not just decide to take his revenge and kill us all!'_

"..."

"Uh, (Y/n)?" You snapped out of your daze when you heard Rin call for you.

"Huh? Oh! His name, right! It's..." You paused for a moment, trying to come up with something good. "...Maimo. Yeah, Maimo."

It sounded almost like an actual name when you pronounced it without any childish dictation. 

"Huh, weird name. Where'd you get that from?" Rin raised a brow.

"Oh, I made it up. Just sounded cute, ya know?" You shrugged, wanting to change the topic as quickly as possible. Luckily for you, it was time to board the train. "I'll go in first, I want a window seat!" 

"Wha- No fair!" The ravenette rushed in after you. He probably didn't even want a window seat, but, due to the competitive nature of your relationship, he couldn't resist backing down from such a childish challenge.

Unfortunately, thanks to your rushing, Rin didn't notice Shiemi, bumping into her and causing her to slip onto the floor.

"Ah! Sorry, Shiemi!" The flame-wielding half-demon didn't hesitate to offer the blonde a hand. "Lemme help you up!"

Shiemi, however, couldn't find it in herself to respond, simply staring up at Rin with wide, horrified eyes from where she sat on the floor.

You simply sighed, shoving your luggage into a random seat before intervening. Without a word, you crouched down, hooked your hands underneath Shiemi's arms and tugged her up til she was standing. Once she was up, you grabbed Rin's wrist, dragging him towards your seats despite his protests. 

"W-what the hell!?" The other half-demon stuttered as you pushed him into the seat next to your own. He watched as Shiemi greeted the others, acting as if nothing had happened.

"Just...ignore them, alright?" You huffed, sitting down in your own seat. "They're not even worth it."

Amaimon nodded in agreement, clearly wishing to add his own input about how humans are ungrateful, insignificant creatures anyway. He'd never hesitated in broaching the topic with you before, attempting to convince you to elope to Ghenna with him after his power returns. You, of course, declined as politely as possible by completely ignoring him.

"B-but, they're my friends!" Rin protested, trying to assure you they weren't actually bad people, despite your recent encounters with them.

_"How...How can he just sit there!?"_ Your ears twitched as the young bald-headed boy you'd never bothered to learn the name of quivered in his seat directly behind Rin. _"What if he goes wild again!?"_

_"The higher-ups said it was okay. Just don't bother them."_

_"How can you stay so calm, Shima?"_

"Yeah, they sure sound real friendly right now." You clenched your teeth, knowing that lashing out would only upset your friend, even if it was to defend him. You looked over to Rin, noting the dejected look on his face, your heart breaking as you did so. Shakily, you reached out a hand, placing on top of tussles of raven hair. The young man, in response, glanced up at you in acknowledgment. You gave him a grin in an effort to cheer him up. "Lemme see that pamphlet you packed. I've never been to Kyoto before!"

"Me either!" Rin lifted his head, light now returning to his eyes at least a little. "I wanna see Kyoto Tower and tons of other cool stuff!"

"Same! Let's bully _Boobalicious_ into letting us out on the town for a day!"

"For sure!"

The cheery conversation came to an abrupt halt as the two of you froze in complete shock not a moment later when Izumo "eyebrow-bitch" Kamiki herself took the seat on the end of your row, only one seat away from Rin.

Well, this was awkward. 

Shura had wasted no time explaining your mission as soon as the train took off. Basically, the Eyes of the Impure King were toxic demon relics. Your job in Kyoto was to protect the one not stolen already. Seemed simple enough.

Now, however, about ten minutes into your ride, there was an awkward silence between you, Rin, and Izumo Kamiki. 

"Aren't you scared of me?" The blue-eyed boy was the one to speak first. 

"Ha! Of you? Not in the least." Izumo scoffed, rolling her eyes as if the statement was completely ridiculous. "Maybe you don't know, but there are _tons_ of people with demon blood, many of them being exorcists." 

"R-really!?"

"Yeah. Did you really think you and Pheles were the only ones?" Twintails continued. "The problem is that the demons you two are related to are pretty much the most dangerous demons in existence, besides the King of Light. The order hasn't killed you because they don't know if you're a boon or a bane yet. Not to mention, they might act all tough, but they can't risk losing Sir Pheles or turning him into an enemy. That's all this is about."

Polkabrows crossed her arms, raising her voice so that the passengers in the seats behind you could hear her loud and clear.

"So I can't be _flipping out_ over _every_ little _thing!_ " Izumo huffed, clearly miffed at the attitude everyone else was presenting.

"Dang! Guess you're not so bad after all, Half-Brows!" You sent a grin of appreciation, ignoring Izumo's protest to the nickname. "You can be kinda stand-offish at times, but at least you're not a _paranoid coward_ like everyone else."

"WHO'RE YOU CALLING A COWARD!?" Bon was quick to hop up from the seat behind you, seething in anger from your words.

"OBVIOUSLY YOU ROOSTER-BREATH!" You shot up to prepare to get physical, only to be hindered by Rin's arms quickly locking underneath your own to hold you back.

"GRRRRRAAAAH!"

"I sentence you to Bariyon Punishment! I told you to work together!" Shura angrily scolded you as a group, the rock in your lap making you uncomfortable as well as grumpy from earlier. 

Warning you not to wake her up, the redhead stormed out of the room, leaving all of you alone in the train car. 

"Does this happen often? Why would she have these things on hand?" You sighed.

"We did this during our exwire exams as well. Come to think of it, it was Bon's fault last time too." Shima chuckled. Most of the students in the cram school were like him; they didn't mind speaking to you alone, but they typically avoided you since you were almost always with Rin. Renzo laughed. "You still haven't made any progress, Bon!"

"Quiet you!" 

"W-why'd she have to leave Okumura with us!?" You could hear the tears in baldy's voice, somehow only annoying you further. "If he acts up, our lives are in danger!"

Before you could tell him off, his rock shot up into the air, landing on top of Shiemi who'd been sitting next to him. It began crushing her under its weight as time passed on.

Hopping up along with the others, you rushed over to where Shiemi was laying. Renzo and Bon tried their best to lift it, but couldn't seem to get it to budge. 

"Urrrgh! I can't, I'll throw my back out!" Shima squealed after failing to move it. "I think you have to burn or break Bariyons..."

"Leave it to me!" Rin volunteered immediately, grasping onto the rock as if this was what he'd been _born_ to do. 

"Hold on!" You stopped your friend before he could spew his flames, suddenly pulling out your watch as an idea came to mind. "Rin! When I give the signal, I want you to blast this thing with your flames, got it?" 

"Yeah! You can count on me!"

"I know..." You gave a soft smile, in response, showing Rin your appreciation. With a deep breath you focused on the Bariyon alone, moving the long hand on your watch backwards about five minutes. Your head felt like it was splitting apart, the pain causing you to grind your teeth as you did your best to keep it together. 

Focusing on a single object, especially a living one, was somehow more taxing on your body than stopping time or just going forward or backwards yourself a few minutes. This was why you needed training, along with a proper teacher to help control these abilities. Though, it couldn't be just anyone. It'd have to be someone _strong_.

As the time flow of the Bariyon moved backwards before your very eyes, it wasn't long before the rock demon was back up into the air the same as it'd been minutes before. "Now, Rin!"

"Got it!" Rin blasted the Bariyon with his blue flames, burning the rock along with several seats surrounding the group. 

"Knock it off!" Bon pulled his blue-eyed peer back, preventing him from releasing any more fire and allowing the Bariyon to crash to the ground. Shiemi had been smart enough to move, so it simply fell on the carpet below where she'd once been laying. Suguro wasn't finished there, however. "Can't you get it through your thick skull? Those blue flames _can kill people_! People who are apart of my temple and family have died from those flames!"

Izumo, in the meantime, managed to make quick work of extinguishing the fire, destroying the Bariyon in the process.

"You won't have to worry about anything like that ever happening again! Cuz I'm gonna defeat the guy that did those things! Got it!?" Rin snarled, grasping the collar of Bon's shirt. "I'm not him! So don't group me in with him!"

"Why, you-!"

"Bon! Above you!" Shima shouted, drawing your attention to the Bariyon dropping right over Suguro's head, fully intending to crush in his skull.

You barely had enough time to react, the pain from your usage of power still pounding. You used your watch once again, pausing the cabin around you this time, rather than just the rock. You moved quickly, shoving Ryuuji out of the way before practically collapsing on top of him. 

The moment you passed out, time resumed, the Bariyon dropping to the ground while Bon suddenly had an arm-full of you. Did you just... _save him?_

"Can't you kids even handle a pipsqueak like this!?" You'd be happy later knowing that you missed an entire lecture from Shura while you were sleeping.


	28. Buddy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes you forgot that Amaimon had absolutely zero moral values.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MERRY CHRISTMAS YALL SURPRISE!! THREE NEW CHAPTERS!
> 
> I'm sorry there aren't more "cyoa" chapters rn, I wrote out two more, but realized they should probably be part of the main fic cuz plot relevance 🙃
> 
> Shiemi's chapter can be read as more platonic, but I'll add in another later just in case for people who don't wanna romance Rin or Shiemi, but, for now, this is what ya get. I hope you all enjoy!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

You rubbed your eyes, stretching your back off of the futon underneath you, hoping to feel a satisfying _'pop'_ from the action.

It didn't take you long to realize you weren't in your bed back in the manor. While this futon was comfy, nothing could compare to the absolute cloud your mattress was back home. 

You sat up, looking around and noting that it was clearly still daytime from the light pouring in from behind the sheer sliding doors nearby. You were clearly the room's only intended occupant for your stay seeing as there was only one bed centered in the middle of the decently sized room. Thanks to the décor and overall atmosphere, you could tell this was one of the nicer rooms this establishment had to offer.

You figured this was the inn Bon's family managed, though you were a bit surprised he hadn't convinced them to room you in a storage closet after all the fighting you two'd done. 

"Amaimon?" You called for the demon king, watching as he crawled out from under the covers you'd just been using. "What happened while I was out?"

 _"The annoying meathead carried you here on his back after the train stopped. A human woman insisted you be put in this room to rest."_ The hamster caught the piece of candy you tossed him as thanks, holding it in his tiny paws in a manner you couldn't help but find at least a little cute. _"They clearly know you're much higher above them in status. I saw where Rin Okumura and the other worms are staying and they didn't even bother to get them separate rooms."_

"Huh? Everyone else is sharing?" You dumped most of the candy out of your suitcase, wondering why they didn't just group you in with the others. "Don't tell me they did this cuz of Papa."

 _"Why wouldn't they? You're the highest of Samael's kin and Princess of Time,"_ You cringed a bit at the title, ignoring the fact Amaimon was speaking with his mouth full. _"You can join the rest of our family in Ghenna whenever you want, all you have to do is unseal your demon heart and claim your place as my wife, Queen of Earth."_

"Uh-huh. We've been over this _Mai-mo_. I have a life here." You leaned down, picking up the small rodent in your palm. "I have friends who I care about and don't wanna leave."

 _"Like those human weeds you were so eager to play with on the train?"_ It took you a while to figure out the first time he'd used the term 'play' a few days ago, but he really meant 'fight'. _"You shouldn't be so quick to play with others like that. I'm the only one who's allowed to-"_

"Amaimon, if I fight someone else, it's cuz they've either pissed me off or I'm training to get stronger. Not cuz I wanna 'play.'" You sighed, hoping this would sate the King of Earth's jealousy, at least for now. "But, no. Not them. They're gross. I mean people like Rin, Belial, and Papa."

You stopped there with the examples, mostly because you couldn't think of any other people you considered close enough to be called 'friends.' 

_"They're all demons. Just take them with you. I never understood why Samael was so attached to this world in the first place."_ You put the hamster down once more.

"How...do you still not understand that kidnapping is wrong?" You shook your head in disapproval. "Besides, I don't have a large enough sack to carry all three of them."

You slipped a pair of slippers on your preciously bare feet, heading out of the room and towards where the nearest sounds were coming from. Your demonic hearing was both a blessing and a curse. 

Shura was the first one you managed to run into.

"You're up? Great!" The redheaded woman didn't seem too concerned about your condition, but you decided to leave it be. "You can start helping out the others."

"Alright, I don't mind. Where is everyone?" Finally! Your first official work as an exorcist-in-training! You tried your best to hide the look of excitement from your face, but couldn't gage if it worked or not from Shura's reaction.

"They all split up so it's up to you who you buddy up with really. So, pick a friend and get to it." The senior exorcist yawned, clearly uninterested in keeping this conversation going much further, though, a sly expression soon took over her face. "Or should I say _'friend'_?" 

The older woman snickered. 

"Don't think I haven't noticed what's going on between you _lovebirds~_ " 

"L-l-lovebirds!?" Your face turned bright red at the insinuation. Was that really what it seemed like?

"Though, I dunno how _daddy dearest_ 'll handle the news." Shura seemed lost in thought on the matter. "He usually keeps you on a pretty tight leash. I can't imagine he'd take it well if you told him you were dating."

"Please, never refer to my dad as 'daddy' ever again." You cringed a bit. As far as you were concerned, you were the only one who could call him that without it being weird and you didn't even do that unless you _really _wanted something.__

__You didn't bother acknowledging any of the other things she'd said; there was no use trying to change her mind on the topic._ _

__Thankfully, Shura seemed to drop it. "So, who's it gonna be?"_ _

__Good question._ _


	29. Watermelon {Rin}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why the fuck was Bon even on this list? Oh well, you'd just have to cross his name off later. Or at least switch his place with Kuro's.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's Rin's chapter! I like this one the most so far ngl 😭😭
> 
> Get ready for feels!!!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Rin, of course. I'm not exactly on good terms with any of the others at the moment." You pouted a bit, still annoyed about the incident on the train. "And I won't be til they get off Okumura's case."

"You sure are stubborn." Shura sighed, despite her immediate smile afterward. "He really is lucky to have you, Princess!" 

You couldn't prepare yourself for the noogie the redheaded firecracker gave you, ruffling your hair and unintentionally shoving your head in her boobs. "H-hey!"

Shura just laughed, releasing you from her hold. "I saw the slacker head outside just a minute ago. Do me a favor and keep him outta trouble, 'kay?"

"Yeah, yeah." You waved her off, parting ways without another word.

It didn't take you long to find Rin at all. As soon as you opened the door to head outside, you nearly bumped into him. 

"Oh, hey! You feelin' any better?" The first thing the half-demon did was press his forehead to yours to check your temperature. You were kinda used to it by now, but, with the conversation you'd had with _Boobs-a-lot_ earlier, your face couldn't help but flush just a bit. Rin frowned. "Huh, you're kinda warm. Sure you shouldn't be resting up some more?"

"Nah, I'm good. Thanks, Mom." You giggled, taking the plate the blue-eyed exwire had been carrying on his head. Both of his hands were full of similar plates, all filled with slices of watermelon. "Where'd you get this stuff anyway?"

"Bon's dad, believe it or not. He's actually a pretty cool guy." That was surprising. You'd expected him to be some kind of hardass authority figure from the way Ryuuji acted. 

"Seems like Bon could take a note or two." You rolled your eyes. "You gonna offer this stuff to the others? Lemme help out."

"You sure?" For some reason, Rin seemed a bit hesitant to let you join him. It was kinda weird since he'd never once complained about hanging out with you before. "You could always go join the others. I'm sure they're doing much more interesting stuff than this..."

Aaaah, so it was his self-confidence issues kicking in.

"Why would I wanna be there with them when I could be here with you?" You stated as if the answer was obvious. You really hoped he'd snap out of it soon. You hated seeing him all mopey cuz of the others. "Don't let it get to your head, but, outta everyone else here, you're pretty much the only one cool enough to talk to. Other than me, of course."

Rin blinked, trying to process your words. Soon, a big grin spread from one of his cheeks to the other. "Thanks, (Y/n)."

"Don't thank me for the obvious, Chicken." You rolled your eyes playfully. "Let's just hand these bad boys out before Boobalicious gets mad at us."

"Alright!" Rin followed you inside, searching for any exorcists that looked willing to accept food from demon spawn.

It took you very little time to find others well enough to eat. A group of patients were arguing in a tiny room, attracting your attention.

_"Ooh, I'm soooo scared! Resorting to force, huh? All you Shimas are so incompetent!"_

Dang, this lady was pissed. She and her sisters all looked pretty much the same, making you wonder for a brief moment if perhaps they were actually clones. You then remembered that wasn't possible, feeling a little silly for even thinking such a thing. 

_"WHAAAAT!?"_

The other party didn't seem to take the criticism too well. That must've been Pinky's family. They weren't bad looking, but none of them were really your type. The snake ladies however...

_"The recent attack showed your father's lack of leadership! We're talking about the essential problem here!"_

_"Ha! Essential? Explain that in 200 words or less!"_

"I thought Kyoto was more elegant than this..." Rin seemed disappointed in the behavior of the Kyoto Field Office. You honestly were a little too. 

"I don't think they're interested in eating watermelon right now." You noted, grabbing Rin's wrist with your free hand. "There's no sense in wasting our time here."

"Alright..." The other half-demon complied without complaint, allowing you to drag him back outside to sit on the walkway.

You plopped down first, hanging your feet off the end of the platform without a worry in the world. You wordlessly picked up a slice of the watermelon Rin had cut up and took a bite out of it.

"Hey! Those are for the patients!" The Okumura protested immediately. "What'd I tell you about eating other people's food!?"

"C'mon! The people inside are either too sick to stomach this kinda thing or too busy dick-measuring to eat it." You spit out a seed into a nearby bucket that honestly looked too rusted to be considered fit for use anymore.

"Well, w-what about the people treating them?" Rin argued.

You shook your head. "They'd just get their hands sticky, so they'd probably refuse anyway."

That was a lie. You knew they wouldn't accept, but you didn't have the heart to tell Rin it was because of _him_. You saw the way people treated him and you weren't planning on giving them more opportunities to put him down than they already had.

Your friend eventually gave up, sighing as he sat down next to you. You offered him a slice of melon which he accepted absentmindedly. 

"Hey," After a short while, you'd broken your mutual silence. "How far do you think we can spit these seeds using our demon strength?"

"Huh? I dunno." 

"Looks like we'll have to find out." You grinned, picking up your next slice. "Betcha I can spit it farther than you can."

"You're on!"

"Ouch!" Tatsuma Suguro stood in front of his family's shrine, rubbing the back of his head. He'd just been minding his own business when he'd suddenly felt something hard smack into him. Luckily, he'd caught the offending object, allowing him to take a closer look. "A...watermelon seed?"

He barely managed to duck as the next fruity projectile shot past him, into the shrine and making itself at home.

Later that night, you and Rin carried large stacks of bento, helping out the kitchen staff and on gofer duty for Shura. 

"Good work!" The senior exorcist complimented, not hesitating to indulge. "Now, go get some rest. We're starting early tomorrow."

"Alright." Rin agreed, still full from all the watermelon the two of you'd devoured earlier.

"I'll go too. I'm done for the night." You headed out with the Okumura, bidding goodnight to Shura and only Shura.

The two of you found yourselves outside of your bedroom door, sitting much like you had been earlier during the day. You weren't really sleepy, having rested earlier and Rin didn't seem too tired either.

The two of you talked about this and that, mostly just admiring the moon and how lovely the cool breeze felt against your heated skin.

Rin, however, wasn't actually interested in the moon. Sorry Yue. Instead, his gaze was focused on you, watching as you smiled and laughed in the silver light without a care in the world.

Feeling as if you were being watched, you captured his gaze, catching him redhanded. 

"Rin..? Are you...okay?" You leaned in closer, pressing your forehead to his in a similar manner to how he'd done earlier. His face was warm, but he that wasn't unusual for him. You were always a little jealous of how his body retained heat so well, tempting you to cuddle him at every opportunity given. 

Rin didn't seem to hear you, swallowing nervously at the contact. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes, remembering that moment you'd had at the bell tower. Gathering up all the courage he could possibly muster, he ignored the pounding of his heart that echoed through his ears, and began leaning in to close the gap.

Unfortunately for him, you weren't quite on the same page. 

Not reading the mood one bit, your eyes drifted to a sheet of paper in Rin's pocket, reflecting off the light of the moon.

"What's this?" You tugged the paper out of his pocket, quickly leaning back and unfolding it to read what Was written.

"W-wha- Hey! Give that back!" Shaking off his hypnotized state, the Okumura twin reached over to snatch the sheet away from you, only to be hindered as you pushed him back using your foot.

Holding the paper up to the sky, you snickered. "You seriously ranked the people you know by coolness?"

Rin simply kept trying to grab the sheet, a little embarrassed you'd found it.

The list read as follows:

1\. Fujimoto  
2\. (Y/n)  
3\. Bon  
4\. Konekomaru  
5\. Me (Rin)  
6\. Kuro  
7\. Yukio

"Huh?" You blinked, making sure you were looking at it right. "I'm number 2?"

"Sh-shut up!" Rin, who'd given up trying to tear the paper away from you, crossed his arms and avoided your gaze.

"Wow. This Fujimoto guy must be pretty cool to beat me out for number one." You teased, grinning at the list as you looked it over again. "Who is he anyway? I need to meet my competition!" 

"You can't..." Rin suddenly frowned, looking down to the grass below his feet. "He's my old man. He passed just before the school semester started..."

Oh boy, that's right. You remembered when your father had gone out of town for a funeral, merely a day or two before you'd met Rin. Looks like the assumption you'd made back then was right.

Now that you thought about it, you remembered hearing the name in the trial too, but you'd been so concerned for Rin you couldn't really concentrate on the details at the time.

"Rin, I...I'm so sorry..." You placed a hand on his shoulder in comfort. "He must've meant a lot to you..."

"Yeah, he did. But I took him for granted and now, because of me, he's gone." Your eyes widened as tears began to slip down Rin's cheeks, breaking your heart in two. 

It hurt to see him like this and it hurt even more knowing you didn't know how to help him. All you knew was that you wanted to be there for him. You wanted him to rely on you and not feel like as if the entire world hated him.

Before you knew it, you'd wrapped the other half-demon in your arms, holding him close to your heart as you embraced him. Rin froze at the action. Eventually, he relaxed into the hug, wrapping his arms around you in turn and resting his head just above the origin of the beating in your chest. 

You stroked his hair gently with one hand, staying silent as you did so, until every one of his tears had stilled. In that moment, you pulled away, just a bit, before looking into his beautiful weepy eyes. You placed a gentle kiss on his forehead, hoping the message would get across.

Once he looked more emotionally stable you pulled away completely, picking up the list once again.

"Ya know...it's not bad, but there's something bothering me about it..." You squinted your eyes as if analyzing the paper.

"W-what?" Rin blinked in confusion, watching as you stood up and brushed yourself off. 

"Wait just oooone moment~" You entered your room, leaving the Okumura outside. You came back after a minute or two, sitting down exactly were you had been before. You wordlessly took the paper and placed it on the floor, using a pen you'd grabbed from inside to scribble something on the sheet. All of a sudden, you held it up, presenting the final product to Rin. "There! Much better!"

"You...moved me to number two?" Indeed you had. You crossed the other's name out from where it'd been previously and wrote it next to yours instead. 

"Mhmm!" You nodded in confirmation. You shrugged nonchalantly as if it wasn't much of a big deal. "It's pretty hard to be cooler than me, but you're pretty much the coolest guy I know."

Other than maybe your Papa, but you didn't wanna ruin the moment.

"..." Rin was silent, gripping the sheet in his hands as if it were a matter of life and death. You let out a deep breath you'd secretly been holding in as you watched a soft smile form on his face. "...thank you."

"I told you earlier: don't thank me for the obvious, Chicken." You flicked his forehead, smiling in return. "Now, come on. Let's head inside and hit the hay. I'm gettin' sleepy!"

Rin allowed you to pull him into your room, watching as you flopped onto the futon below. "You...want me to sleep in here...with you?"

"Duh! Those other guys probably snore. Plus, I know you want some of my awesome cuddles!" 

"W-whatever!" Rin's face grew hot as he stiffly joined you, laying his face a good distance away from your own. You snorted in response, but didn't push it. Instead, you silently held one of his hands, squeezing it in comfort.

Sooner or later, both of you feel asleep, exactly like that the entire night.


	30. Useful {Shiemi}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy, someone let you into the kitchen. That's never a good sign.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 30!! Yaaay!!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"I think I'll go see what Moriyama's up to..." 

You hadn't referred to her by her first name since she'd ghosted you. You really wanted to believe it was just a misunderstanding, but part of you wasn't so hopeful.

"Blondie's helping out in the kitchen." Shura gestured her head in the general direction of the room. "From the look of Mephisto's lunch the other day, I'd suggest you stick to dish duty if you wanna be helpful."

"Huh? Papa said that was the best bento he'd ever had though..." 

"That guy. I still can't believe he actually has a soft side." The redheaded beauty rolled her eyes. "It sounds a little _too good to be true..._ "

"What?" Was she trying to suggest something?

"Oh, nothin'." Shura waved off your questioning gaze. "Hurry up and head to the kitchen. I'm starvin'!"

"Whatever." You sighed, figuring you probably weren't getting any answers out of her any time soon. You headed over to where she'd motioned the kitchen area was, discontinuing the conversation.

Shiemi had frozen up the moment you entered the kitchen, leading up to a solid hour the two of you were just in total silence. You took Shura's suggestion and stuck to doing dishes while Shiemi decided to spend her time chopping veggies.

"So, uh, have you guys gotten to see the eye-thingy yet? I feel like I hit the hay at a really inconvenient time." You rubbed the back of your neck sheepishly, doing your best to make conversation.

However, it was no use. Shiemi simply kept stiffly chopping vegetables without any indication she'd even heard you. Your face fell, realizing there was no sense even trying.

"Ow!" Distracted in your thoughts, You mishandled a knife by mistake, accidentally cutting your finger. You hissed at the sting, clutching your hand closer to your body on instinct.

"Are you alright!?" Shiemi was by your side in moments, grabbing your hand to get a closer look at the wound.

"Huh? Oh. Yeah, I'm fine." You blinked in surprise, having expected the gardener to continue her silence. "It should heal up pretty quick with my demonic healing and all. There's no need to worry."

"We should still disinfectant the wound." Shiemi insisted, a determined expression on her usually cheery face. "Nee! Get me some Mister Yuugo, please!" 

You weren't sure who or what 'Mister Yuugo' was, but the tiny green familiar wasted no time popping out some kinda plant that Shiemi immediately used to treat your rapidly-closing injury. It stung a bit, but not for too long. Before you knew it, the blonde had slapped a bandage where the cut had once been, clearly proud in her work.

"Thank you, Shiemi." You offered the other girl a smile. "You're really good with medicine. It's super useful."

"You think I'm... _useful_?" For some reason, Shiemi started tearing up, causing you to panic a little. Did you say something wrong?

"Of course! I'm actually pretty jealous!" You decided to offer her a grin, hoping that you didn't just screw things up any further.

In response, the soft blonde gripped your hand in her own, looking up at you like she was about to cry. 

"Oh, Miss Pheles! I'm so sorry!" Tears began to flow down Shiemi's cheeks. "I've been such a bad friend! You, Rin, and Yuki have all been suffering so much and I really haven't been doing anything to help you!"

Was that what she'd been upset about this whole time? Ignoring the fact that you'd really only been "suffering" for the few days you actually knew you were a demon, you couldn't help but want to comfort her.

"Shiemi, you've been hella helpful to all of us." You placed your free hand over the one that the gardener was using to grip your other. "All you need to do is stay by our sides. Your support is more than enough."

You weren't sure who hugged who first, but Shiemi was in your arms within the next moment, silently crying as you pet her head in comfort.

Looks like you'd broken your promise.

"Make sure you don't drop these, 'kay?" You passed the carefully crafted bento dinners to Rin. "Shiemi crafted these with a lotta care."

"Yeah, yeah, what do you take me for; a klutz?" Rin huffed, carrying at least three times as many as the other exwires. 

" _Yes_." You teased, playfully shoving him out of the kitchen. "Eat every last bite!" 

"Yeah, yeah..."

You watched as the others left before turning to Shiemi. "It's pretty nice out. You feel like eating outside?"

"I'd love to." Moriyama nodded, taking your hand in her own before leading you to the nearby garden. 

That night, you had dinner with Shiemi for the first time under the beautiful moon, not letting go of each other's hands the entire time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos if you can guess where I got the name Yuugo. I'll give you a shoutout next chapter if you do 😎


	31. Pride {???}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Looks like if you wanna actually improve at all, you were going to have to swallow your pride and ask a certain someone for help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the third choice I promised! It's kinda short, but it does what it needs to do lmao
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Actually..." You hummed after thinking for a moment. "If it's cool with you, I wanna go train a little."

"Studyin' hard, huh? That's alright." Shura approved giving you a simple pat on the head. "Keep it up and you'll be an even better student than Flame-Brain!"

"Thanks." You rolled your eyes, heading back into your room to grab your bag before the conversation could continue any further.

It didn't take long for you to find a nice, quiet place outside without any people. You weren't quite sure where the exorcists of this branch typically trained, but for now, this was good enough for you.

You placed a few empty cans, courtesy of Shura's drinking habit, on top of a fence nearby and stood back, admiring your handy-work. 

"Alright. All I gotta do is shoot the cans down. That's all I'm aiming for." You took a deep breath, readying yourself for training. You'd already resigned relying on Rin's brother to learn this stuff, so you figured it'd be better to be self-taught than nothing at all.

You pulled out a pistol from your bag. It'd been a present from your father that you'd been taking pretty good care of since receiving it. You loaded it up the way Yukio showed you, one of the few things he'd actually bothered to demonstrate, before readying the weapon to fire.

Carefully aiming for the first can, you pulled the trigger.

Thirty minutes later, you were out of exorcism-bullets and every can was still practically pristine in condition. The closest you got to an actual hit was grazing the middle can in a stroke of luck. You collapsed to the ground, looking up at the sky and wondering about the least suspicious way to ask Shura or someone at the temple for more ammo. 

"Man, how am I supposed to learn from a guy who can't even bother to acknowledge I exist half the time?" You pouted, wondering why Mephisto even suggested this guy to be your teacher. "I should probably just look for a new instructor myself. One that can actually bother to at least _pretend_ to be a gentleman." 

Yeah, that sounded like a good plan. Or at least a study-buddy learning the same stuff. 

The image of someone popped into your head, simultaneously making your face hot in irritation and embarrassment. There was no way you'd ever ask _him_ for help with jack shit! 

Then again...

Rin was the next person to pop into your mind. He was really counting on you to become an exorcist soon, trusting you literally with his life. He'd come to your rescue without hesitation when you needed him, the least you could do was let your pride down a bit and ask _that guy_ for help. 

"At least he's kinda cute..." You sighed, swearing to speak with him as soon as this whole Kyoto-fiasco was over.


	32. Motivation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You train under a certain demon king's guidance, though, you'd feel a lot less irritated if he just learned how to read the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SORRY THIS ONE'S LATE I WAS BUSY! I have the next 1 and a half chapters written already I swear I'm not lazy ;;
> 
> Speaking of, this chapter originally had more in it, but it was getting too long so it was split in two. 
> 
> I hope you all enjoy! 
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

The next day, you woke up early, heading out to eat breakfast and get your next assignment from Shura. Surprise, surprise, it was another "free" day, at least for demon spawn like you and Rin.

You decided that you'd spend the morning training in your room this time and catch up with your half-demon pal later on.

Amaimon perked up from his spot on the futon as you re-entered the bedroom. _"You're back soon. Have you finally decided to abandon those exorcists?"_

"Uh, no. I just felt like training in here today." You explained, grabbing a pen from the nearby desk and sitting. Amaimon silently climbed up the table, watching as you placed the pen down in front of you. "I'm still not great with using Papa's abilities yet, so I wanna practice. So far, the only powers that don't hurt are freezing time and moving forward or back and, even then, I can only go for about five minutes, if that."

In truth, you really weren't sure how well you could actually travel through time. Your mind raced back to a conversation you'd had with your Papa a few days ago. 

_"As bearers of the aspect of time, we have certain responsibilities that can't be ignored." Mephisto lectured, his tone surprisingly serious for once. You stood in front of his desk, hanging onto every word, whether you really wanted to or not. "Tweaking with time and space a bit is virtually harmless, however, if manipulated too much, reality as we know it could collapse before our very eyes."_

_You swallowed nervously. You guessed Uncle Ben had been right with all that power and responsibility talk._

_"As soon as we travel back in time, be it twenty years or twenty hours, we become observers. We can look, but we cannot interfere with what's to come." The demon king explained, observing your every movement as if to analyze you. A mischievous smile made it's way onto his lips, sending a cold shiver up your spine. "If your powers grow anywhere close to my abilities, you'll be able to move your consciousness along time itself, no longer needing to tax your physical form."_

_"R-really!?" That sounded pretty cool! It was too bad you couldn't pull a Back-to-the-Future or anything, but you wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth._

You slapped your cheeks, grounding yourself to reality once more. 

"Time to get serious!" You picked up the pen, staring at it with such intensity that, if you were Rin, it probably would've burst into his signature blue flames. You did this, glaring at the writing utensil for a solid minute before Amaimon chimed in.

_"What are you doing?"_ The green hamster tilted his tiny head in curiosity. _"Is this another strange human ritual?"_

"Nope!" You answered, eyes never leaving the pen. "I'm trying to do that thing Papa does where he makes stuff disappear. If I can figure out how to do this, I can sneak whatever food I want wherever I want!"

_"I see..."_ Amaimon nodded in understanding. _"...you seem to not be doing a very good job."_

"Thanks for the words of encouragement." You honestly didn't know what you were expecting. It's not like the demon king was going to dress up in a cheerleader uniform and cheer you on or anything.

You slumped down in your seat, tempted to give up entirely. 

"You got any actual advice ya little moss goblin?" You turned to Amaimon, not allowing your hopes to get too high, but still curious if he'd respond with something useful.

_"As long as you expect it to happen, it will."_ Amaimon answered, ignoring the 'moss goblin' comment. _"That is how the abilities of us Baal work."_

"Huh?" You blinked, sitting up straight at the revelation. If that was the case then...

You picked up the pen. Looking it over for a few seconds before shutting your eyes and holding in a deep breath. Silently, you tossed the pen into the air with the belief in your heart that it would disappear before you opened your eyes. 

A second passed...

Then another...

"It wor- OW!" You almost shouted in victory, but wound up calling out in pain instead as the pen smacked you on top of your head. You must've thrown it pretty high.

_"You still have some doubts in your heart._ The King of Earth shook his head.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious." You couldn't help but glare at Amaimon, almost wishing it was him who'd vanish instead.

You'd eventually left the room to find your home boy like you'd promised him earlier. It didn't take you long at all to find him, your increased sense of smell making it incredibly easy to do so. All you really had to do was take a whiff of one of the many sweatshirts of his you'd hoarded and follow that scent outside.

It was a little confusing at first, the scent going upwards at one point, but eventually you figured he'd probably hopped onto the roof. 

"Yo! Rin!" You cupped your hands around your mouth, calling out to him.

"Huh?" The Okumura twin peeked over the roof's edge, rather cutely if you had to say. "Oh, hey! You made it just in time! I'm about to start training again."

"You mean the thing with the candles? Sweet." You replied, throwing on the sweatshirt you'd been carrying before stretching upwards in a grabbing motion. "Gimme a hand, will ya? I'm not used to jumping up this high."

"Got it!" Rin reached down with both hands, preparing to pull you up whenever you jumped high enough for him to reach.

You backed up a bit, preparing yourself for the leap before just going for it. You hopped up much higher than expected, instinctively wrapping your arms around Rin's neck to keep yourself from slipping back to the ground. You might've had demonic healing now, but that didn't mean splatting onto the hard earth below would be a pleasant experience.

"Gotcha!" You grinned, leaning back to poke the other half-demon's nose. "Now you've gotta grant me three wishes!" 

"That's genies, you dummy." Rin rolled his eyes playfully, flicking your forehead gently before he stood up. He took your hand, leading you over to where he'd left his sack of candles.

"Glad you two could finally make it." Shura sarcastically commented. "Maybe now you can actually start trainin' for once."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm doin' it." Rin quickly got to work, pulling out a few candles and setting them ablaze in no time. You took a seat next to him, watching the wax spires melt under the intense heat.

You watched Rin work hard late into the evening, sad to see him get so frustrated from failing so many times.

"Damn! Why do I melt the whole candle!?" The Okumura twin growled in frustration after what felt like his hundredth attempt. "Damn it!"

Shura yawned. "Giving up all ready?"

"I'm not giving up! My t-shirt's sweaty so I'm gonna go change!" Tears of frustration fell down his cheeks despite his words. "And you! Start acting like a teacher and quit lyin' around!"

"Oh Rin..." You sighed, watching as he lept off of the roof. You frowned, noting just how completely useless you felt in that moment. Rin was trying so hard and suffering so much just because of how he was born and there was nothing you could do to help him. After all, you didn't know anything about Stan, his blue flames, or how to slay powerful demons...

"I see that look on your face." Shura said, grabbing your attention. She laid on the other side of the rough, chilling like this was an actual vacation for her. "Listen, what Rin needs now, more than anything, is a friend and, so far, you've done an excellent job of just that." 

You were surprised by the statement, unable to hide the look of shock on your face. As you let the words sink in, you couldn't help but offer her a smile in gratitude. "Ya know, you might not be such a bad teacher after all, Miss Booze-'n-Boobs!"

"That's ri- Hey! What was that!?" The redheaded swordswoman made to draw her blade, preparing to punish you swiftly. 

Luckily for you, Rin popped back up a moment later, still dressed in the same clothing as before.

"Weren't you gonna go change?" Shura raised a brow, her attention now drawn to Rin. 

"There's no time for that! I need to master this!" You weren't quite sure what'd happened while he was alone, but you had to admit, you were happy to see him motivated again.


	33. Trouble, Yet Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Does Bon have some kinda resolution to get into as many fights with demonspawn as possible before the trip is over or is he just an idiot?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a day late again, sorry! I was traveling, but now I'm back so we're gucci.
> 
> Here's part 2 to the last chapter. I hope you enjoy ^^
> 
> Shoutout to mangomacaroonart for getting the reference in Shiemi's last chapter 😎😎
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

"HELL YEAH! I DID IT!" Rin's face lit up as both candle wicks set ablaze without melting into wax puddles. 

"NICE WORK!" You highfived the other half-demon in celebration, glad to see him more excited than he had been this whole trip. "You've finally mastered your flames!"

"Not yet." Shura butted in, instantly raining on your parade. "He needs complete control to come easily."

"Damn, that's right." Rin sighed, slumping his shoulders. "I've got a long way to go..."

"Well, this is still a big step for you!" You tried to cheer him up, proud in his accomplishment even if he hadn't mastered his training. "Let's go get barbecue when we get back to True Cross to celebrate! Papa's treat!"

"Eh? When did he agree to this?" Shura snorted.

"Oh, he didn't. I just know where he keeps his card." You admitted with a shrug. "I'll bring him back a souvenir to make it up to him in advance."

_BOOOOM_

"...that...that wasn't him was it?" Your stiffened at the sound.

"I don't know, but something's wrong." Shura looked over in the direction of where the noise came from.

"Everything's shaking." Rin was right, helping you keep your balance by holding onto your arm as the building shook beneath your feet.

"C'mon! We're gonna go investigate!" Shura wasted no time leaping off of the roof, leaving you with no time to respond. 

You and Rin glanced at each other before following her lead together. 

"Looks like we missed the party..." You observed the damage done to the inner chamber warily, watching as several exorcists scrambled in panic. "I wonder what- _ACHOO!_ "

Rin watched in horror as you sneezed into _his_ t-shirt. "Hey! What the hell!?"

"What? You said it was dirty anyway." You sniffled. "Plus it's not like I have cooties or anything. _ACHOO!_ "

You sneezed again.

"Are...you okay?" Rin asked, ignoring how you were still using your messed up logic to dirty his shirt with your snot. Honestly, he blamed Mephisto's parenting.

"Yeah, I think it's just allergies." You answered, wishing your father was here to offer you his hanky. "Papa gets them too sometimes, but I dunno what causes 'm."

_"Mamushi turning traitor and this mess we're in...all of it..."_ Was that Bon? He sounded pissed. You looked over, your sneezing fit ceasing as whatever had been in the air must've cleared out, only to see Suguro clutching the collar of some bald guy. "IS YOUR FAULT!"

"Ryuuji..."

"Who's that bald guy?" Shura asked, crossing her arms at the display.

"No clue." You replied. "But Bon seems to have it out for him."

"That's Suguro's dad." Rin answered, frowning.

"The truth...is a secret! One I can't even tell my own son." Despite Bon's treatment towards him, the older man smiled. "It'd be better if I never had to tell you. Anyway, I have to go after Mamushi."

Suguro's father turned to leave.

"Ryuuji, be a good boy. Okay?" 

_"ENOUGH WITH THE CARING FATHER ACT!"_

You were taken aback by the sudden shouting. You'd always known Bon to be pretty loudmouthed, but even this was a bit much.

"If you leave without answering me..." Ryuuji clenched his fists tightly at his sides. "...I'LL NO LONGER CONSIDER YOU MY FATHER!"

You glanced over at Rin, watching him go rigid at the declaration.

"Well, I've gotta go." The older Suguro continued to leave despite Bon's ultimatum. "Sorry."

_"Wait."_ The next thing you knew, Rin was grabbing the back of the bald man's robes, preventing him from going anywhere. 

"He got away again!?" Shura uselessly looked to her side as if needing confirmation it was true. 

"Looks like it..." You sighed.

"Suguro...YOU JERK!" You couldn't get over in time to stop Rin from socking Ryuuji right in the face. "I don't know what's going on, but you'll regret this later! Now, apologize! You can't disown your dad!" 

"You're one to talk! You're the one saying you're gonna defeat your own father!" Bon spat back, his face looking pretty busted from the blow.

"Alright, Rin and Ryuuji, go on and make up now, okay?" Suguro's father tried to mediate in vain. 

"GET LOST AND NEVER COME BACK!" Bon shouted at the older man.

_"SUGUROOOO!"_

You were only able to watch in horror as Rin's flames sparked up, alarming the exorcists around you. 

_"What's going on!?"_

_"What is that!??"_

You shoved those who'd crowded the scene out of the way, forgoing manners completely as you made your way to intervene. You hooked your arms underneath Rin's armpits, barely able to do much other than keep him directly out of Ryuuji's face. 

"I DON'T WANT TO BE THAT DEMON'S SON!" The Okumura didn't acknowledge your presence, continuing to scream at the other exwire. "BUT YOU'RE DIFFERENT, RIGHT!?"

"Bon!" An older man pushed Ryuuji out of the way. "Run!"

Rin's flames began to die down as he stood still once more. You loosened your grip, letting go when deeming it safe enough.

"EEEYOOOOOWWWW!" Apparently, you'd spoken to soon. Rin collapsed to the ground in pain not moments later.

"Rin! What's wrong!?" You knelt down, a strange sense of deja vu falling over you.

"Rin, if you lose control, they'll exorcise you!" Shura whispered, crouching down at the exwire's other side. "Get a grip."

"Butt out, Hag!" Rin panted wearily, angering the older exorcist instantly. Shura mumbled a few strange words you didn't recognize and, soon enough, Rin had passed out from the pain. 

"RIN!" You immediately took the offensive. You already regretted letting that Angel guy go, you weren't gonna make the same mistake twice.

"Relax, he's just passed out for now. He'll be just fine after some rest." The moment you stepped close enough, a pair of cuffs were slapped onto your wrists, preventing you from reacting violently. You assumed they were probably made of the same stuff Rin's tailpiece was. "There's nothin' you can do to help him if you pass out too, so you better just follow my instructions, okay?"

"Tch." You glared at the ground, knowing she was right no matter how much you hated it. 

"Take her somewhere safe. I don't need Mephisto up my ass for hurting his _'precious princess'_ or anything like that." At Shura's request, a few exorcists who were brave enough to approach, escorted you out of the chamber.

You could only glance back at Rin's fallen form and worry for what's to come.


	34. Double Jail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The guards outside of your room were probably going to be fired after this, but if they were anything like the rest of the exorcists in this branch, they were probably douchebags anyway.
> 
> Also, your father totally cheats at board games.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't have much to say for this one lmao
> 
> I'll probably add in notes later if I think of them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy! I don't own Blue Exorcist!

Before this, you'd always assumed that if you were ever imprisoned it'd be for breaking into the zoo in the middle of the night and taking those cute ass penguins home. Or arson.

 _"I don't understand."_ Amaimon watched you hug your legs, sitting on the comfortable futon provided by the inn. _"Why don't you just break out of this room? It's not as if you couldn't easily defeat those parasites standing guard."_

You shook your head. "That would only cause more trouble. They'd probably put Rin on an even heavier lock down..."

You needed to come up with a plan, fast. Rin was in danger, especially if the exorcists here decided to get that Angel freak involved. But what could you do..?

" _ACHOOOOO!_ " You sneezed for what felt like the millionth time already. Your allergies were acting up again all of a sudden. "That's weird. I've slept in here several times and never- _chu!_ -sneezed like this before..."

You desperately searched the room for a tissue to wipe your gross snotty nose. Unfortunately for you, there didn't seem to be any around.

You could feel your next sneeze building up, your face scrunching as it prepared to let out a big one. " _AAAAAAHHHHCHOOOO!_ "

" _Gesundheit._ " You turned around to see none other than your father standing as if he'd been there the entire time. He pulled out one of many hankies he owned, using it to manually wipe your nose the way he'd always done during your childhood. "Much better!"

"Papa! When did you get here?" Your face scrunched as he cleaned it, displeased by the action, but allowing him to do as he pleased anyway. 

When he was finished, he tossed the now-tainted cloth into the air, causing it to disappear into the void. 

"Not long. I rushed over as soon as I could get out of that wretched board meeting." Mephisto sighed warily before eyeing you with a knowing look. "Apparently a couple of half-demons have been stirring up trouble in the Kyoto branch. _You wouldn't happen to know anything about that though, would you?_ "

"M-maybe..." You mumbled, a blush of embarrassment lighting your cheeks. You couldn't look the elder demon in the eyes. 

"Well, regardless, you're lucky your position is a lot more advantageous than Mister Okumura's." Mephisto narrowed his eyes. "I'm afraid he's just been sentenced to death." 

"W-what?" Your voice grew shaky as a light ringing invaded your ears.

"Yes, unfortunately, even I cannot change their minds this time." The King of Time allowed you to embrace him, patting your head in comfort in hopes of consoling you. "Now, now, my little _cat sídhe_. Dry your tears. Papa will make it all b-"

" _ACHOO!_ " 

Mephisto's face fell, disgusted that you'd just sneezed into one of his finest silk cravats without any semblance of regret whatsoever. He raised a hand to his forehead in order to rub his temples. "Honestly, what kind of a lady did I raise? _ACHOO! _"__

__Finally, it was Mephisto's turn to sneeze, the allergen in the air growing stronger by the moment._ _

__" _Gesundheit, Vati._ " You looked up at your father with a teasing grin. _ _

__" _Danke._ " Mephisto narrowed his eyes at you suspiciously. " _Allow me to return the favor._ " _ _

__Before you could let out your next snot-rocket, the older demon snapped his fingers. Suddenly, you were wearing a face mask, much like the ones surgeons wear, though this one was your favorite color. You immediately felt relief from the attack on your sinuses; not a lot, but enough that you weren't sneezing every two seconds anymore._ _

__Mephisto soon locked eyes with Amaimon. The two seemed to share a silent conversation before the green hamster crawled his way into your pocket. He didn't seem frightened, but, with a poker face like his, you'd hardly be able to tell even if he was._ _

__Your father then looked back to you with a small smile gracing his thin lips. "Would you like to accompany me to Mister Okumura's cell?"_ _

__"Yeah! Take me to see Rin!" You clutched the lapels of Mephisto's suit as you made your demand._ _

__"Nuh-uh," The demon king waggled his pointer finger in your face in a scolding manner. "Try again~"_ _

__"..." You glared up at him, pouting from beneath your face mask. "... _bitte_."_ _

__"That's better!" And with that, the two of you disappeared in a puff of pink smoke._ _

__

__

__

__"Howdy!" Mephisto greeted the hall despite the terribly thick atmosphere. " _Guten abend!_ "_ _

__You immediately slipped from his hold, rushing up to the bars of Rin's cell. "Rin!"_ _

__"(Y/n)? What's Mephisto doing here?" The other half demon stood to meet you._ _

__"Good question." Shura looked at your father, clearly annoyed by the sudden appearance. Yukio, who stood next to her, seemed to be fairing no better._ _

__"No need to be rude. I'm here to help you clean up your mess." Mephisto straightened his cravat with a huff before pointing to Rin's cell with his umbrella. " _Eins...Zwei...Drei!_ "_ _

__You stumbled back as a giant metal box appeared right where you'd been standing mere moments ago. From out of the contraption shot a giant metal claw, dragging Rin inside of it before you could grasp your bearings._ _

__"The inquest committee headed by the Grigori has sentenced Rin Okumura to death." Your father explained, though he didn't sound too torn up about it if anyone asked you._ _

__And with that, the doors to Rin's new prison cell clunked closed._ _

__"Papa..." You turned slowly, looking at your father with a straight deadpan. "You realize... _he was already imprisoned, right?_ What's the point of putting him in double jail?" _ _

__This was why you never used your father's house rules when playing monopoly._ _

__"To make it harder to escape of course!" Something about the wink he sent you when saying that seemed suspicious. "What's important now, however, is defeating the Impure King."_ _

__"How did you know about that!?" Shura seemed surprised word had reached him. Though, if the Vatican had managed to hear about Rin's fight with Bon, you didn't see why he couldn't have known about this._ _

__"Isn't that impure thingy from that story you told us on the train?" You scratched the inside of your ear with your pinky. You were pretty sure you remembered Shura's speech. "Weren't we here to protect its eye?"_ _

__"Well, ya see..." The redheaded exorcist rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "It was kinda _stolen_."_ _

__"The thieves now have both eyes and will no doubt use them to unleash the Impure King upon Kyoto." Yukio sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as if this were more of an annoyance than anything._ _

__"Oh. That sounds..." You paused for a moment trying to come up with a word to describe the situation. "...bad."_ _

__"Indeed, Pumpkin." Mephisto gave you a pat on the head._ _

__"So, why aren't you helping out exactly?" Shura looked to your father through a narrowed gaze._ _

__"It's impossible. It's much too uncleanly." Mephisto sneezed into a tissue he'd suddenly conjured. "I have terrible allergies, you see."_ _

__"I guess the tree doesn't stand too far from the fallen apple." Shura deadpanned watching as you sneezed immediately afterwards._ _

__"The Impure King will rapidly grow and once he matures, Kyoto will become a city of _death_." Your father pointed his umbrella towards Shura. "Defeating the Impure King won't be a simple task. Here's a little gift!"_ _

__A pile of clothing appeared in Shura's arms._ _

__"Good luck!" You father then leaned in to whisper in your ear. " _Be a doll and don't break it from the outside, alright?_ "_ _

__And with that, Mephisto was gone._ _


	35. Unriddled

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You learn some important lessons in love and loss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all get an early one cuz I've blasted through writing the next like five chapters and I'm not completely sure I'll be able to update again til next Tuesday. No clue tho.
> 
> We're pretty close to the big battle, I hope you're ready 👀👀👀
> 
> I hope you enjoy! I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Geez, that guy." Shura sighed, rubbing her temples at Mephisto's swift exit. "Why can't he just be straightforward for once?"

You stood near the metal prison, curious and worried for Rin. "Papa just wants to help in his own way. If he said anything directly, he'd probably get in trouble with those jerks you guys work for."

Shura snorted. "Ya know, you're gonna have to work for those _jerks_ someday too if you wanna keep livin' in Assiah."

You cringed in response. As much as you hated it, she was probably right. Your muscles froze in horror when you realized this meant you'd be stuck with guys like Arthur Angel for the rest of your life.

"Whelp, I'm off!" Shura turned on her heels, heading towards the building's entrance. "Be a good little princess and wait here, 'k?." 

"Huh?" You watched as she left, visibly confused. You shook your head, looking to Yukio as he follwed suit.

"I'm leaving too." That was all you got before he left. 

"Geesh! At least try and act a little upset your brother's been sentenced to execution." You glared at his retreating figure, not really caring much if he could hear you or not. 

You eyed the contraption in front of you, silently wondering what was up with your father's obsession with prisons. First, there was that cuckoo clock and now, this?

"Hey, 'Maimon. Is my old man... _normal_ for a demon king?" You asked the tiny rodent wiggling in your pocket. 

_"Samael is strange even to the rest of the Baal."_ Great. Oh well, even if the rest of them act similar to Amaimon, that still makes them all total weirdos, so maybe it was a good thing Mephisto was different. _"He's a lot more fun than the rest of our brothers, though."_

You sneezed into your mask.

"Look! There's Faust!" Someone called out.

You quickly turned to look in the direction you'd heard the voice coming from, only to find absolutely nothing. 

"Am I...hearing things?" You slapped your cheeks in hopes of snapping yourself out of whatever stupor you were in. 

"We've come to help save Okumura!" No, no, the voices were definitely there, not to mention the scents of the other cram school students, so you weren't imagining things. However, you still couldn't see them. There was only one plausible explanation to come to mind-

"Did-did I...BREAK TIME!?" You remembered your father saying it was fragile, but damn! From a sneeze? You were gonna be grounded for at least a month for this. Then again, if time was truly broken, your father would probably have a difficult time measuring that out, so would he even bother?

"No, you nitwit! We're using camouflage!" Izumo lowered her hood, revealing herself while the others followed suit. You let out a sigh of relief, though a bit disappointed you had to drop your plans of finding a way to use the fissure in time to extend summer vacation or get your hands on those limited edition chips your favorite brand sold when you were little.

"Is this it?" Shima took a close look at the metal prison encasing Rin.

_"TOODLE DEE DOO~!"_ Your jaw dropped as the giant contraption you'd just spent a solid ten minutes with began singing out of the blue. 

"What the actual _fuck!?_ " Had it heard your conversation with Amaimon? What an eavesdropper!

_"WEE WEE WEE! I AM DAS STÄRKSTE GEFÄNGNIS! I LOCK FROM THE OUTSIDE BUT NOT FROM THE INSIDE!"_

"Well, if Papa named you, he's gotta work on being more creative."  
You eyed the box in annoyance. "But, if you named yourself, then I'd say it's almost cringey how condescending that is."

The demon prison paused for a moment and you felt like you'd probably hit a sore spot. You'd feel bad if it hadn't just gobbled up your best friend. 

_"RIDDLE ME THIS!"_ Apparently it'd shaken itself off from your comment. _"WHY AM I SO STRONG? FIGHT ME AND SEE~!"_

"We just have to fight it then, right?" At Suguro's statement, everyone save for Shiemi entered battle positions, preparing to attack as a team.

_"GRAAAAH!"_ That's when everyone went still, save for you and Shiemi.

"Huh?" You turned around, wondering why everyone was just frozen. You waved a hand in front of Bon's face, looking over him while biting your lower lip in concern. He didn't even blink. You rested your hand on his chest to check if he was even still breathing. Shiemi looked just as confused as you were. 

_"WEEWEEWEE! THE ANSWER IS-"_ You sneezed, turning back towards the metal prison. _"...BECAUSE I CAN FREEZE ANYONE WHO TRIES TO ATTACK ME! THAT'S WHY THEY CALL ME THE STRONGEST! MWAHAHAHA!"_

"Bruh, that's not even a riddle. What the fuck?" You deadpanned, watching as the prison somehow sagged a little at the comment. Maybe you could roast this thing into letting Rin out.

"So why didn't we freeze?" Shiemi wondered aloud. 

_"YOU'RE WEAK AND UNARMED..."_ It sounded like you'd taken quite a bit of wind out of this thing. _"...AND DIE TOCHTER MEINES MEISTERS IS IMMUNE TO MY ABILITIES..."_

Shiemi looked down to her feet, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. Seeing this, you grit your teeth. 

"That means I can kick your ass no problem, right?" You glared at the now trembling prison, ready to bust it open through force before remembering what your father had said earlier. 

_"Be a doll and don't break it from the outside, alright?"_

He'd probably meant this thing. You sighed in exasperation. "Looks like we gotta go in ourselves..."

_"UNFORTUNATELY, I AM ONLY FIT TO CONTAIN ONE OTHER PERSON IN AT THIS TIME!"_ Whelp. That sucked.

You reached for the doorknob protruding off of the prison's face. "Don't worry, I'll bring 'm back-" 

"Please! Let me be the one to go!" Your eyes widened as Shiemi cried out to you, clutching at your sleeve. "I...I want to be strong enough to help save my friends!"

"...alright." You backed away, making room for the blonde to open the door and step inside. "But if you're not out in ten minutes, I'm crackin' this thing open like a cold one with the boys." 

Shiemi nodded in understanding and that was the last thing you saw before the door shut, trapping her inside. This left you alone with the frozen bodies of your classmates and the talking prison that'd been a pain in your butt since it showed up.

"Soooo..." You rocked back and forth on your heels. "Let's talk."

"Ooo, that one wasn't half bad!" You praised with a grin, causing the prison's metal to heat up a bit in bashfulness. The two of you'd been working on new riddles to replace the one that hadn't made sense. Turns out, this guy wasn't as bad as you'd thought.

With his permission, you'd named him Ansel after an artist who's piece hung up in your father's study. You'd remembered it because you'd been scolded for breaking the frame once when you were ten and from then on vowed you'd never throw golfballs like ninja stars in the house ever again. A vow you'd break the very next day. 

Nevertheless, Ansel liked his new name.

_"I AM HONORED TO RECEIVE PRAISE FROM ONE SUCH AS YOU!"_ Ansel seemed proud, though you weren't sure what exactly made your opinion so special.

"Why's that?" You asked directly.

_"BECAUSE YOU ARE THE SPAWN OF MEIN MEISTER, OF COURSE!"_

"Ah, so that's it." Wow, if you didn't know any better, you'd think this guy admired your father more than you did. "Ya know, I'm pretty cool on my own _without_ relying on my old man's reputation." 

The contraption began to sweat somehow, obviously not believing you, but also not wanting to correct you either. 

"Geez, I guess I'll just have to show you then." You rolled your eyes. "As soon as this whole 'Impure King' situation is dealt with, let's hang out, 'k?" 

_"I COULD NEVER REFUSE SUCH A REQUEST!"_ And like that, the talking prison seemed happy again. _"HOWEVER, I WOULD NOT WANT TO SEND THE WRONG MESSAGE TO DEIN LIEBHABER!"_

" _Mein Liebhaber_?" You looked disgruntled.

_"JA! HE SEEMS TO BE STRONG FOR A HUMAN!"_ The demon box chirped. _"AND I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYONE WITH SPLIT HAIR SUCH AS THAT!"_

"Ugh. Why does everyone assume me and Rin are togeth-" You paused, your brain finally registering exactly what Ansel had said. "...wait, ' _split hair_ '?"

You looked over to where the rest of the exorcists-in-training stood frozen.

"You mean _BON!?_ " Your eyes went wide at the implication before you burst out laughing. "W-what on Earth would give you that idea!?"

_"HE WAS THE FIRST ONE YOU CHECKED AFTER THE REST OF YOUR COMRADES WERE FROZEN!"_ The talking prison explained. _"YOU SEEMED QUITE WORRIED ABOUT HIM!"_

"I...did?" Your laughter died down as you gazed over at Suguro. Nah, there was no way. "No, no, he's just a jerk who's been on my friend's case since the moment I met 'm."

Ansel had it all wrong; there was no way you'd ever have feelings for a guy like Bon!

"He's stubborn, loud, prude, short-tempered..." You began to list off all of the negative qualities you'd seen in the exwire, eyeing him with lightly flushed cheeks when you were finished. "...but...I guess he might be _a little_ cute. That's it though!"

_"AH, ICH VERSTEHE..."_ You had a feeling he didn't really believe you.

"W-what do you know about finding people attractive anyway?" You scoffed, glaring at the metal contraption. "You're made of bits of scrap metal!"

It was at that moment Ansel exploded in a ball of blue flames.

"I DIDN'T MEAN IT!" You crouched over one of his pieces with tears in your eyes, picking up the warm metal, horrified.

"Hey, (Y/n)! Guys! You all came to bust me out!?" Rin seemed surprised to see the large group gathered just to help him. Meanwhile, the other exwires slowly grasped their bearings. It must've been a weird experience to suddenly freeze in time and then unfreeze several minutes later. 

"I know you're not dangerous." The bald kid who's name you still didn't remember was the first to speak, looking between you and Rin as he did so. "...so let's all be friends."

"Konekomaru!" The other half demon seemed touched.

_"Just so you know, I'm only following orders."_

_"I didn't wanna come, but I'm glad I did!"_

The rest of the group spoke up in turns while you silently mourned the loss of your new friend. 

"Awe, (Y/n), were you really worried enough to cry?" Rin smiled softly, placing a comforting hand on your shoulder.

"Y-yeah..." You strained a grin of your own in return. 

"Here. You were right, but only about my dad." Suguro held the koma sword out to Rin, standing menacingly in front of you. "You're gonna need this if you're gonna fight."

"Suguro..." The Okumura accepted the sword hesitantly. He stared at the sheathed blade, clutching it like it was his last lifeline. "I can't help how I was born...but I'll use my flames for us! So please, trust me!"

Bon scoffed, turning on his heel and heading for the exit.

"Who cares about that? What I can't forgive is how you take everything on yourself." The split haired boy's face scrunched in anger. " _You're_ the one who pushed us away! Why should I trust a guy like that?" 

"What the hell are you talking about?" You jogged up to Bon, stopping him in his tracks by gripping the back of his cloak. "Any time Rin's tried to speak with you since the trial, you've either picked fights or ignored him!"

You glared at the back of Ryuuji's head.

"And yet, he still considers you his friend! So get over yourself and make-up already!" You loosened your grip, letting go of the exwire.

In return, Bon sighed. 

"...alright..." That was the last thing he said before starting to move again. "Let's head to Kongo-Shinzan in Rakuhoku...

"To defeat the Impure King!"


	36. Found in the Woods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You find Bon's dad in the woods, along with a heaping dose of family feels.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyooo, I'm here and so is the next chapter! I don't have much to say, but I'm in a pretty good mood, so y'all might get another chappie sometime later this week uwu
> 
> ALSOOOO YOOO WE HIT 99 COMMENTS AAAAAAH! THAT'S AWESOME!! THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH!!! 😭😭😭💖💖💖  
> It really does motivate me to continue updating and idk if I'dve kept writing without the support, especially from both certain people who make the effort to comment nearly every chapter if they can. I wanna give them a shoutout but I also don't wanna make 'm uncomfy on accident. They know who they are tho ;w;
> 
> Please don't feel pressured or anything, but if you wanna leave a kudo or comment, feel free, even if it's constructive criticism. I love everyone I've interacted with thanks to the comments section and look forward to doing so even more in the future! 
> 
> I hope you enjoy! I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

"Father!" Suguro ran up to his dad who'd collapsed to the forest floor. He was bloody and didn't look like he was in the best shape. Suddenly, flames burst up from the older man's body. "What the-!?"

The rest of you caught up, only to witness a demon pop up from the fire.

 _"...you see the flying monkey too, right?"_ You whispered over to the person standing the closest to you. It just happened to be Shima.

"That's Karura, Bon's dad's familiar." The pink-haired boy explained quietly. 

"What are you kids doing here?" Tatsuma sounded weak. He probably couldn't hold out too much longer.

"We came to help!" Bon crouched down next to his dad. You followed suit soon after. 

"Does anyone know first aid?" You looked over form, trying to figure out where he might've been bleeding from.

 _"Fear not; I have healed his wounds, but he must not move."_ Tatsuma's familiar explained. _"I will not allow him to die."_

"Rin!" The monk coughed, calling out to the other half-demon. "Have you read my letter...?"

"We all have." Ryuuji answered for him. You'd looked it over during the walk over, mostly skimming it since you were in a hurry. You understood the gist of it, but you thought about asking to take a better look when all of Kyoto wasn't on the brink of total destruction. Bon continued. "Everyone here understands the situation. Now tell us _everything_."

"Alright...I'll tell you how to defeat the Impure King..." Tatsuma sighed, his face growing grim. "The Impure King will grow to the size of a castle and a giant spore sac will form in the center."

You weren't gonna laugh. Nope. You were totally straight-faced. 'Sac' was a completely innocent word in your opinion.

"...if it matures and ruptures, poisonous spores in the form of gas will spread through the air." The older Suguro continued, undeterred from his bloody mouth. "The Impure King's only weak spot is its 'heart' which is inside the sac."

"Those must be the right and left eyes..." Izumo muttered loud enough for the group to hear.

"So, we've gotta find a way to keep the gas from spreading so we can pop the sac and break the 'heart', right?" You looked up to the sky, trying to figure out a scenario where things'll all work out. "Something tells me breaking up with it over text isn't gonna work though."

Tatsuma chuckled softly. 

"Fifteen years ago, I made a deal with Karura to use the Aeon Wave Flame." The older man looked over to his familiar, his face hardening. "It converts a person's lifespan into flames. I planned on using it to completely destroy the Impure King, but I only managed to use it to hold him in place."

All of a sudden, he crushed the flaming Karura in in fist. Harsh in your opinion. If you tried something similar with Amaimon, you have no doubts he'd bite your fingers.

"With the remaining flame, I'll prevent the gas from spreading when the sac bursts. Rin..." Tatsuma turned to your best friend. "I want you to use the Koma sword to destroy the heart of the Impure King."

"I'm sorry but..." Rin hesitated.

"I know..." Tatsuma smiled. "You could die, but-"

"Huh? No. I mean I can't draw my sword."

 _"Huh!?"_ The group voiced in sync.

"I've been trying, but I can't do it." Rin explained, demonstrating by pulling at the sword's sheath unsuccessfully. "It's some kinda mental hang-up."

You immediately smacked Bon on the head. "Good going, Rooster-Brain! You broke him!"

"Me!? What the hell!?" Ryuuji turned to glare at you.

"Now, now, don't fight. Your friends after all." Tatsuma tried his best to diffuse the situation. He tried to stand up, but struggled. "I'll at least put up the barrier..."

 _"You must not move. You've lost too much blood."_ The fire monkey was clearly unbothered from what the monk had done to them earlier, scolding their master. _"If you attempt a barrier spell now, you will die."_

"This is more important than my life!" Tatsuma insisted.

"Dad, is there anything we can do?" Bon held onto his father's arm, helping to steady him.

 _"Oh? If you are Tatsuma's son, I can transfer the Aeon Wave Flame to you thanks to your high priest blood."_ Karura eyed the younger Suguro as if judging him closely.

"No! You can't involve him!" Tatsuma was quick to object. "I swore these fetters would end with me!"

Bon paused, biting his lower lip in thought for what felt like an eternity. 

"Hey, I get that you're feeling protective of your son..." You voiced after a solid minute of awkward silence. "But Bon's a grown man now. Why don't you have some faith and let him decide for himself?" 

_"The nephilim is correct, Tatsuma."_ Karura turned to Ryuuji. _"I will now transfer the Aeon Wave Flame."_

"Looks like you won't be the only arsonist around anymore, huh?" You stood, heading over to Rin and playfully hooking an arm around his neck. 

"Shuddap..." The other half-demon pouted, looking away from you.

 _"Ryuuji Suguro, you now possess the Aeon Wave Flame."_ Karura lit up, drawing your gaze towards your classmate who simply stood in awe. 

"Ryuuji..." Tatsuma sighed, finally giving into his son's wishes. "I will teach you the strongest known barrier spell. Watch closely."

You released Rin from your hold, watching the father and son practice the hand signs required for the spell.

" _AHCHOOO!_ " You sneezed into your mask. " _ACHOO!_ "

"Man, you're still sneezing? What's up with that?" Rin eyed you with concern, silently glad his shirt was safe from your snot thanks to your mask.

"Yeah. From what Pops said, I think it has something to do with the Impure King, to be honest." You sniffled.

"Then, it's gotta be miasma." Izumo piped in, clearly grossed out from your constant sneezing.

"Huh? I don't see what that has to do with anything." You raised a brow. "Do you need an inhaler or somethin'?"

"No, you dummy!" Izumo scoffed. " _Miasma!_ It's like the stench given off by kin of the King of Rot."

"Another demon king?" As if you didn't have enough of those in your life at current. You blinked as soon as you'd finally registered the normally twin-tailed girl's words. "Wait...you're telling me...there's a literal _king of garbage-_ "

"DAD!" You all turned to see Tatsuma collapse. Bon hastily called out to the rest of you. "Moriyama and Kamiki...would you stay here and look after him?"

"Okay!" Both girls were quick to agree.

"Shima, Konekomaru, go tell everyone in Myodha what we just learned." Ryuuji stood, turning to look at the giant formation slowly growing in the distance. "I'm going to put up the barrier."

 _"No way!!"_ Both Konekomaru and Shima objected. "You're gonna die, ya know that!?" 

"No." Rin stood in front of Ryuuji, resting his sword over his shoulder. "I'll protect him."

"And I'll go too!" You immediately joined in. "Rin was able to use his flames in the prison cell, so he can at least use 'm a little. Plus, we're both pretty strong."

"...alright." Konekomaru backed down, turning to start heading down the mountain. 

"Let's go." Bon took the lead for your little group, walking in the opposite direction. "And Dad..."

Ryuuji kept moving forward, refusing to look behind him.

"You better not die on me, alright?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll catch up on comments tomorrow lmao. I'm dead tired u-u
> 
> Also, I'm interested in seeing who makes comment number 100 👀👀👀


	37. Astaroth's Moving Castle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You didn't know much about this Garbage King, but if this is how bad his kin smells, you weren't sure you ever wanted to meet the guy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who commented! I decided to upload early cuz I had it written and I'm in a good mood 👌👌👌
> 
> We're finally getting to some action! Hope y'all are ready 👀👀
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"It's an actual castle...?" You stared at the Impure King in awe, only tearing your gaze away to sneeze. " _ACHOO!_ "

"Crap. We've gotta hurry..." If you didn't know any better, you'd think Bon had allergies too. He was looking in pretty poor shape, not that you could blame him. 

You all turned at the sound of rustling coming from bushes nearby.

_"Rin!"_ Kuro popped out, waving his paws frantically in front of you. _"We've gotta run! It's dangerous and it really stinks!"_

"Tell me about it- _AHCHOO!_ " You sniffled, sinuses burning as if they were on fire. "Unfortunately for both of us, we're fightin' that thing."

_"WHAT!?"_ Kuro growled, looking to Rin to confirm your statement. _"You can't deal with that thing! It's too dangerous!"_

"Someone's gotta do it." Rin replied.

_"You dummies!"_ In the next moment, Kuro grew at least twenty times his original size, much to the amazement of both you and Ryuuji. _"Let me take you then!"_

"Dang Kuro! I can't believe you haven't shown me this earlier!" You eagerly hopped onto the giant cat, hugging him affectionately from your seat. "You're awesome!"

Rin was the next to get on with Bon reluctantly in tow. And with that, you were off.

"WOOHOO!" You grinned, practically flying up out of your seat, only managing to stay tethered to your ride by holding onto Rin's cloak.

"We're so high up!!" Rin grinned joining in your tears.

Ryuuji, on the other hand, wasn't doing so well. "We're gonna die!"

Kuro, in the meantime, was doing his best to land, but couldn't find a stable spot to stop. _"As soon as I touch down, it comes after me!"_

"Is there any place to land near the spore sac, Kuro?" Rin asked.

_"I'll look!"_ Kuro bounced around some more, finally finding a suitable spot. _"There! There's a boulder below!"_

"Looks like this is the only place not covered in gunk." You sneezed once again, hopping off of Kuro's back.

Rin and Suguro soon followed.

"Then this is where we'll fight." Rin nodded, looking around to observe the situation. 

"You two...just don't give up, do you?" Ryuuji sighed.

"'Course not!" The other half-demon smiled despite the danger around you. "Everyone is doing their best right now, so we will too!"

Rin turned to look at Bon.

"So get to work on that barrier _Princess Suguro!_ "

"Dammit! You don't have to tell me to do it!" Ryuuji was quick to object, huffing as he crouched into position. He looked to you before he started, tossing you something from his pocket. "Here, catch."

"A gun...?" You eyed the handgun, having caught it with general ease.

"Yeah. You're studying to be a dragoon too, right?" The split-haired boy explained. "Please, tell me you know how to shoot."

"Mhmm! Rin's bro taught me the bear minimum." You nodded in confirmation, way more confident than you probably should've been.

"Great..." Bon didn't seem to convinced, but didn't have much choice.

"Alright! Let's go, Kuro!" Rin jumped off the rock. You stayed behind, deciding to stand on top of the rock to shoot from a distance. There was no sense jumping directly into the fray when you were armed with a long-ranged weapon,

Suguro started chanting strange words and you took that as a sign to start shooting any guck that got too close. Your sneezing was awful by now, snot flying into your mask between shots. It was pretty gross, but luckily you were still able to do your job. 

_"Ryuuji Suguro, I grant your barrier spell."_ Karura shot up to the sky, releasing a red-tinted barrier from their body, encasing your side of the mountain. The Impure King was officially sealed.

"Damn, that was actually really cool!" Rin was quick to praise, gazing up at the newly-formed barrier.

You felt a wiggling coming from your pocket, a certain green rodent peeking out to have a look for himself. He spoke, sounding unimpressed as usual. _"So this is the power of the Aeon Wave Flame..."_

"Hey, you've gotta hush!" You shushed the demon king quietly. "Rin is right over there!"

Rin, however, was distracted with his own problems. "KURO!"

Both demons were starting to become overwhelmed with the spores popping up, fighting them off just barely enough to keep them away from Bon. 

That's when a ginormous creature bubbled up from the guck around you, revealing the form of what looked like a giant moth right in front of you.

You had to shake away the tears in your eyes caused by the horrible miasma the beast spewed from its mouth, your sneezing now automatic every half-second.

"Are you alright?" Bon looked up to glance your way in between his own fits of coughing. Looks like you weren't the only one suffering.

"That's what I should be asking you!" You sniffled, trying to control your allergies the best you could. 

"HEY! LOOK OUT!" Rin shouted, his eyes growing wide as he looked behind Suguro.

The giant moth had moved in an instant, looming dangerously over Suguro who was frozen to his spot.

"SUGURO!" Rin cried out, preparing to try and catch the beast in time.

"I've got this!" You pulled out your watch with one hand, reflexively using the button to still time around you. The radius was small, only managing to cover Suguro and the creature, but it was enough to keep Ryuuji safe while you caught up. Your head pounded, your abilities not used to being used on a being so incredibly large, but you grit your teeth to bear it.

You aimed your gun at the creature, shooting multiple times at multiple different angles. Each time, as soon as the bullets left the gun in your hand, they paused like everything else in the area. 

Just as you ran out of bullets, time resumed, each of the special bullets crashing into the giant moth at once. 

The beast screeched as it was forced to back down, sinking back into the sea of ick to shield itself from your attack. 

"Are you alright?" You turned to Suguro who'd begun coughing once more. 

"I'm fine..." Ryuuji muttered, unable to meet your eyes for whatever reason. 

"Good. Just focus on keepin' up that barrier." You instructed. "We'll make sure that thing keeps its distance."

_"Bold words for one who's out of ammunition."_ Your lower lid twitched at the snarky comment made from your pocket.

"Quiet you!" You softly scolded the demon king once again. 

"The barrier's only gonna last another twenty-five minutes..." Suguro muttered, loud enough for you and Rin to hear. "Looks like Koneko and Shima didn't make it in time. I hope they're alright..."

"Of course they are!" Rin insisted, not paying attention to the bubbling gunk behind him.

_"RIN!"_ In a heroic move, Kuro jumped over the ravenette, tackling a tower of ick and saving him from being swallowed. In return, however, Kuro was covered in spores, thrust into the sea of mush in the half-demon's place.

"BASTARD!" Rin cursed at the reformed moth, grasping at his sword as he attempted to pull it from it's sheath fueled by pure rage alone.

"You focus on that thing, I'll go get Kuro!" You called out to the Okumura twin, jumping towards the spot you'd seen Kuro swallowed. 

You hadn't really thought about how you were essentially unarmed until you tried to shoot, only for your gun to let out an empty click. 

"...shit."


	38. Kyoto Ablaze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You really had to have some sort of intervention for Rin. This was the second forest fire he'd caused in what, three weeks?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyoo! It's a few hours early, but here's the new chapter! Finally, we're nearing the end of the Kyoto arc uwu
> 
> There'll be a few different endings as well as 2 other chapters after this, so after next chapter, it might take a hot minute to update. Probably just an extra week if I had to guess, but maybe less if I really get my butt in gear lmao
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy! I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

To your surprise, instead of being overcome by the Impure King as you expected, you were swallowed by the earth below.

A funnel had formed, parting the gunk consisting of the Impure King's body just enough to allow you to land inside. It was a small hole you were incased in, on your knees, completely dark and eerily silent. Your sinuses weren't being barraged by miasma either, so you must've been sealed in pretty good, though part of you wondered how exactly you were able to breathe if that were truly the case...

"Um, what the fuck?" You reached into one of your pockets to pull out your phone, feeling something pop out of your other pocket while you were at it. 

_"You were almost overtaken by the Impure King."_ Amaimon sounded annoyed, glaring at you as you shined your phone light over his tiny frame. _"Though it may be a pathetic beast, I understand mortals are quite fragile."_

Was he...scolding you? 

This was the first time he'd shown direct concern for your safety. You had to admit, it felt kinda...nice.

"I'm sorry." You smiled softly, using one finger to gently scratch the demon king's chin. "Thank you for rescuing me. I'd say we're pretty much even now."

_"Even?"_

"Yeah. For the kidnapping." You hummed, booping his nose before drawing your hand back. "And the bug-larvae thing. I hope you realize now that both of those things are preeeettty bad." 

Amaimon didn't say anything, simply blinking up at you with curious eyes. You simply shook your head.

"You think we could go save Kuro with your terraforming thing?" You asked, shifting to a crawling position.

Amaimon shook his tiny head. _"It's too late. He's already been overcome by spores."_

You sighed in disappointment, worried for Kuro as well as everyone else fighting above. You couldn't just hide safely down here while your friends struggled for their lives. 

"Hey, I've got an idea!" All of a sudden, you smiled, an epiphany forming in your head on how you could assist the group above. "Think you can sense where that giant moth is with your _'demon king powers'_ or something?"

_"It's known as the Impure King's heart and I can sense its location roughly. I'm sure I can figure out when it's about to take form."_ Amaimon tilted his head, using a small paw to scratch behind his ear.

"Good enough!" You praised. "Let's dig a tunnel beneath 'm."

Amaimon nodded, only questioning one thing. _"Can I expect a reward for this?"_

"Yeah, yeah." You rolled your eyes. Of course he couldn't do it just to be nice. "We can get mochi next time we're out. You can eat as much as you'd like."

Your father's treat. As always.

_"Okay."_ The tiny rodent got to it, carving a large passageway through the mountain as he ran on all four of his little paws. 

You crawled behind him, honestly having a bit of a hard time keeping up. Your clothes were going to be ruined after this and your father would _not_ be pleased.

Speaking of, ever since your sinuses improved, you got this weird feeling in your guy that he was close by. Your brain felt warm and comforted the way it did whenever he was near. That wasn't possible though, was it?

You glanced up in a random direction, wondering what Mephisto was doing at that moment. Probably a mountain paperwork concerning Rin's escape. You'd have to thank him later for all of his hard work. Maybe you'd cook him something new.

It took around twenty minutes to finish the tunnel if you had to guess. Considering the area was so large, you were impressed. You supposed when Amaimon was properly motivated, he could really do anything with relative ease. You could only eye the size of the beast, but, if your assumptions were correct, the tunnel should be both wide and deep enough for what you'd planned.

_"The heart is preparing its form of a beast right now!"_ Amaimon informed you, sounding more excited than he had all trip. _"Now will you tell me what it is you're planning to do?"_

"Sure." You shrugged nonchalantly the best you could in that tiny space. "I'm not planning to do anything."

Amaimon seemed confused at the statement. _"Are you planning on having me do something then?"_

"Yeah, kinda." You hummed before pointing up. "I want you to get us outta here as soon that moth pops up. 'K? Then we should get to see something pretty cool."

The King of Earth nodded. _"Then I'll take us now. The Impure King's heart is taking shape as we speak."_

"For real? Alright!" The look of determination on your face masked the hint of worry you felt of your idea possibly failing. You can only hope everyone above was ready to attack.

You popped out of the ground on a spire made of earth, the spores below struggling to climb your perch. Immediately, a shrill screech resounded through the forest, the underground tunnel you'd made collapsing underneath the weight of the heart as it formed into a giant creature. The sinkhole wasn't deep, at least not compared to the relative size of the moth, but it was enough to separate it from the mass of spores, preventing the heart from dissipating into the gunk and popping up elsewhere in the near future.

Before even noting the fall of the barrier, a blue light encased your vision, causing you to shield your retinas from its fury. It felt warm. Not hot enough to burn or anything, but far from cold or lukewarm either. Was this from...Rin?

You cracked your eyes open, spotting the other half-demon not far away. The flames were indeed from him, spewing from his entire being as well as the sword he'd finally managed to unsheathe. There was a ball of fire at the tip of it, its wings reminding you of that flying monkey Karura, making you wonder if perhaps it was a demon similar to the familiar.

The cyan fire burned everything around you, yet only seemed to damage the spores spread by the Impure King. Just to be sure, you reached out with one hand, feeling the flames tickle your skin. 

"Rin..." You softly called, pride welling up in your chest above all else. 

When the flames died down, a clearing revealed itself, having been created by the imprint left from the Impure King. Rin stood at the center, not yet noticing your presence.

The first thing you did was peel the now snot-coated mask off of your face, slugging it down onto the ground below with a wet _'smack!'_ You'd be sure to pick it up later, but for now, you wanted to congratulate you friend more than anything.

"RIN!" You jumped off of the platform, eager to embrace the half-demon you knew had suffered so much simply from his manner of birth.

"(Y/n)- AAACK!" The Okumura twin barely had enough time to catch you as you wrapped each of your four limbs around his torso, causing him to stumble back before steadying himself. Once he was stable, he hugged you in return, soft tears flowing down his cheeks and onto your shoulder in turn. "...I did it. I really...did it..."

You couldn't help but bury your head into his shirt to hide tears of your own.


	39. Tourists

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If it hadn't been for the giant moth attacking the city and endangering your lives, this would've actually been a pretty rad field trip. Now if only you could find a way to bleach your eyeballs...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyooo! Another update this week cuz I'm super ahead with writing the next few chapters! Hope y'all are ready cuz this fic is prooobably gonna reach at least 80 chapters altogether. Maybe even more depending on if I need to split up chapters.
> 
> Speaking of, IIII accidentally lied last chapter in the notes. I added in two more chapters after this before Part 2's end, though it's more like one big chapter split in two. They're honestly some of my fave chapters this section though, so I'm pretty hype for you to read them lmao
> 
> Anyway, after this chapter, we've officially caught up to the anime. I really wish a third season would come out ;-;
> 
> From here on out tho, we're continuing to follow the manga, so spoilers if you haven't read it yet. 
> 
> On to the chapter! I hope you enjoy!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

_"RIN!"_

You hopped out of Rin's arms after hugging for what would be considered an uncomfortably long time for anyone other than the two of you. You kept an arm flung around the other half-demon's neck while one of his rested comfortably around your waist in turn. 

Your ears twitched at Yukio's shout, the younger Okumura approaching soon after.

"Yukio! You're okay too!" Rin was ecstatic, much unlike his brother. Your friend used his free hand to jab his thumb towards himself. "I saved everyone here! I bet you're super impressed!"

"Way to be humble." You rolled your eyes at the smug expression on his face.

"Pretty soon, I'll have surpassed you..." The ravenette let out a chuckle, unaware of the incoming danger until Yukio's fist had already made contact with his face. Your eyes went wide as Rin was knocked out of your arms. 

_"STOP JOKING AROUND!"_ Yukio yelled, scolding his twin much to your enragement. "Don't you understand the mess you're in!?"

"What the hell!? He just saved all of our lives, give him a break!" You glared, stepping forward until you were face to face with the young teacher. "Meanwhile, I didn't see you doing jack, asshole!"

You stumbled back as your wrist was taken in a large hand, tugging you back until you bumped into the chest of the hand's owner. You looked up to see none other than Bon.

"Don't do anything stupid." The split-haired exwire muttered, looking towards the crowd of exorcists standing by in case either you or Rin retaliated. 

You followed his gaze, biting your lower lip. You didn't like it, but you understood his point.

"I do understand." Rin mumbled, loud enough for your small group to hear, but not many standing any farther. "I can't escape my power..."

Yukio went rigid, unable to respond.

"I was always too much of a coward to accept it, but..." Rin started wobbling on his feet, his voice fading in and out. "...that was...wrong..."

"Rin!" 

The other nephilim collapsed onto the ground below. You ripped your hand from Ryuuji's grasp immediately, dropping to Rin's side. He was pale, paler than usual, which worried you. You glared up at Yukio who stood frozen in shock.

You couldn't understand how someone as sweet as Rin could be related to such a douche.

That night, you decided to sleep with the rest of your classmates. 

Rin had passed out in the clearing, leaving it to you to carry him back to the inn. He'd been out cold ever since then, unable to object to you making yourself comfortable in the futon next to him. 

At some point, Shiemi had snuck in and fallen asleep as well. She was supposed to be on nursing duty, but she must've been exhausted. You didn't blame her, allowing the gardener to snuggle you as soon as she conked out. 

You, on the other hand, hadn't managed to get an ounce of shuteye yet. 

"(Y/n)..?" Rin called softly, finally waking in the dead of night. 

You turned to look at him, smiling softly. "How ya doin', Sleepy?"

"Y-you're so close!" He must've finally registered the situation, his face glowing red even in the dark. You giggled softly in response. 

"Rin..?" Shiemi sat up, rubbing her eye drowsily. She smiled at Rin, prompting you to sit up so she wouldn't have to lean over you. She used the back of her hand to feel his forehead. "You're a little warm. Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, thanks." The blue-eyed boy muttered, unable to meet her eyes. 

"You did a good job. Suguro and the others said you saved them." Shiemi drew her hand away, placing it on her lap. 

"Yeah! You're a hero!" You grinned, ruffling the exwire's raven locks in a gentle noogie.

"It was nothin'." Apparently, Rin was bent on playing bashful. He turned his head away, face now hotter than it'd been before. 

"Awe! Okumura's getting attention from the most beautiful babes in our class!" Shima piped up, rolling over to face you all. "I'm so jealous!"

"Hey! I'm here too, you know!" Izumo shouted from behind a partition she'd used to separate herself from the rest of you.

"Who'd be interested in a smart-ass like you?" Ryuuji scoffed, adding in his own two cents.

"Bon! At least try and be nice!" Koneko playfully scolded from his own futon. You could hear his smile from where you sat, not even needing to look in his direction.

 _"Would you all shut your trap!? Some of us are tryin' to get some shuteye!"_

Your eyes widened as some creepy kid you'd never interacted with before and hadn't seen all trip spoke up for the first time, using his puppet to speak rather than opening his mouth. 

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!?" You shivered in your seat, startled by this stranger's sudden appearance.

"He's been in our class this whole time! Are you seriously just noticing him now?" Shima was the first to burst out laughing. Everyone else, including you, was close to follow, filling the room with the lovely sound, much to puppet boy's chagrin.

You weren't sure when you'd fallen asleep, but when you woke up, you were sandwiched between Rin and Shiemi with Kuro resting on Rin's head in your own little demonic cuddle pile. It was nice and warm, tempting you to fall back asleep. Despite this, you carefully stood, sneaking out of the room as quietly as possible.

Your father had returned to the inn after the Impure King's defeat, staying in a separate room than the other exorcists. You wanted to greet him good morning for the first time in about a week and figured he'd appreciate the effort if he'd missed you anywhere close to how much you'd missed him, ignoring the ten minutes you'd seen him the other day.

You made your way to his room, still drowsy, but slowly waking up as you went. You saw the light on from outside of his room's door, bringing a smile to your face. Good. That meant he was awake.

" _Guten morgen, Papa!_ " You threw open the bedroom door with a wide smile, completely unprepared for the sight that greeted you.

You had a full view of Shura Kirigakure's skimpily covered curves perched over Mephisto's laying form, close to making contact in an activity you didn't even want to think about at the time.

The cheerful expression you'd worn hadn't faltered, even as you slammed the door shut immediately and sprinted down the hallway to get as far away as possible. 

Your skin was completely red all the way up to your slightly pointed ears, though your expression only fell once you were far enough away from the scene, which was when your sprint sputtered to a slow walk.

"(Y/n)? I was wondering where you went." Rin approached you, canned drink in hand. He noted the expression on your face and grew concerned. "Is somethin' wrong?"

"Nah, I'm good." You strained a smile, opting not to reveal what you'd seen to Rin's innocent ears. "Hey, totally unrelated question here, but do you remember those purifying flames you used on the Impure King?"

"Uh...yeah?" Rin raised a brow at this question, clearly wondering where this was going.

"Do you think you could maybe _use them on my eyeballs?_ " 

"W-WHAT!?"

"Finally! Let's have fun!" Hours later, you tugged Rin through the streets of Kyoto, though he didn't seem to mind too much. The rest of the group trailed behind you, everyone looking pleased in their own way. 

You spent the whole day with your classmates, goofing off in the riverbank, visiting temples, and finally getting to see-

"KYOTO TOWER!" Both you and Rin shouted in excitement, immediately running inside.

You enjoyed the view first and foremost before heading into the gift shop. You bought a shirt with the tower's mascot on it as well as another item that you'd snuck into your bag quickly in fear of prying eyes. Yes, you'd actually bought a gift for a _certain someone._ It might have been cheesy, but fuck if you cared. It'd probably make them pretty happy and that's all that really mattered to you. 

Shima approached you just as you zipped up your bag. 

"Hey, Faust! You interested in a little prank on Okumura?" The young monk grinned mischievously as you raised a brow.

"As long as it's harmless, sure." You shrugged, admittedly interested.

"Awesome! Here's the plan." Shima leaned in, whispering into your ear his master plan. 

Huh. It actually wasn't completely garbage.

"C'mon! Let's get a pic!" You dragged Rin towards the mascot, not that he needed the encouragement. "Everyone else should join in too for a group shot!"

"Yeah! That sounds good!" Rin took position next to the mascot before looking to the rest of your peers with a pleading gaze. "As long as it's cool with you guys..."

"Of course!" Shima spoke for the group, grinning in response.

The other exwires followed, taking position behind Rin as he cluelessly smiled at the camera. He might not be happy once he figures out your trick, but deep down you knew he'd look back on this eventually and laugh. 

You grinned at the camera, posing in the shape of an 'n' with your arms with Yukio standing stoically next to you. Later on, you'd hang a copy of this photo on your bedroom wall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things went kinda janky when posting this, I hope it was only published once lmao. Let me know if you see more than one of this chapter and I'll fix it 👌


	40. Beach Buddies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You've got 99 problems and the beach is home to several of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another late night/early morning update. Woohoo! 
> 
> I just wound up mushing together the two chapters I mentioned last week cuz I didn't wanna publish them separately or accidentally leave either too short.
> 
> Anyway, this is the last chapter before this arc's endings so keep an eye out for those. There's 4 planned in total; can you guess which characters they belong to? 👀
> 
> This is off topic, but I'm prepping myself for Resident Evil 8 to greet our Tall Queen by playing through all of the other games in order. This would've been a pretty great plan if I hadn't realized I am a major coward and bad at gaming in general lmaoooo (;w;). I'll probably start on fics for that fandom when I'm done👌
> 
> Back to Blue Exorcist!  
> SEMI-IMPORTANT: I'm probably gonna add more "choice" chapters in to coexist with the current/future planned ones, so if you've got a specific character you want interaction chapters for that don't show up when I post the original ones, feel free to drop that character's name below and I'll see about getting them a chapter if able. 
> 
> Like, if you're a fan of puppet guy (weird flex, but okay) and you wanna hang out with him instead of Rin, Shiemi, or training during the Kyoto arc, you can just leave a comment like: "hey dude, i think nemu's pretty rad, could we maybe hang out with him in kyoto?" and I'd look into writing a chapter for him later on.
> 
> Aaaaannnyyyway, onto the chapter! I hope you enjoy! 
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Everyone, go buy a swimsuit!" Shura practically shoved both you and Rin into the shop, ushering the rest of the group as she did so. 

Instead of heading straight back to the academy, your group traveled by train to Kamogawa Beach, much to everyone's surprise. Shura seemed to be the only one aware of the change of plan prior to boarding, but only spoke up once your train had already arrived. 

"Is this some kinda surprise vacation?" Rin wondered aloud, browsing the swim trunks in front of him. "It feels good to be recognized for all of our hard work!"

"Hmm, I dunno. I kinda doubt it." You stood behind him, back turned to the other nephilim as you browsed one-pieces in the aisle across from him. "I feel like if this were planned, Papa would insist on helping me choose a swimsuit like last time. Probably pink. Most definitely frilly."

You picked up a blue suit that looked kinda like your official school swimwear, but ultimately put it back after realizing there wasn't any space for your tail. You sighed. Looks like you'd have to drop from the team for sure. 

You moved further down the aisle towards the two-pieces, going more for color than style at that point. Shiemi joined you soon after, frigidly eyeing each suit like simply standing near them was an act of perversion in and of itself.

"You...okay?" You placed a hand on the blonde's shoulder, feeling as she immediately stiffened up.

"Y-yeah...It's just..." Shiemi looked down to her feet, face beet red. "Isn't wearing a swimsuit...just like being naked..?"

You couldn't help but snort. Was that what she was worried about? "Nah, Babe, you're thinking too hard on it. You think my old man would've let me go to the beach that one time if I was gonna be basically nude the whole time?"

Shiemi looked at you wide-eyed.

"Besides, there's plenty that'll cover more skin than these." You pick up a cute, flowery tankini to prove your point. "But, in the end, it's really your decision. If you're not comfortable wearing a swimsuit, you could always just wear your regular clothes."

"..." Shiemi was quiet, looking forward at the varied swimwear in front of her. "No, I...wanna wear a swimsuit."

You smiled in support, giving her a pat on the back in support. She seemed a lot more relaxed now that she'd made her decision.

You went back to searching for a swimsuit of your own, finally settling on one that made room for your tail to hang free and also felt comfortable on your body. 

"Wow, Shiemi! That looks great!" You complimented, tying the back string in a sturdy knot. 

Shiemi flushed at the compliment. "Thank you...yours looks really nice too, Miss (Y/n)."

You didn't bother correcting her this time, simply smiling before stepping out of changing room. You wore the swimsuit you'd chosen from the rack in your favorite color, topped with a short-sleeved sweatshirt in a darker hue. It was convenient for hiding your tail and protecting you from sunburns, so you found it a to be a worthwhile purchase.

You left Amaimon with the rest of your stuff, the green hamster napping the last you checked.

Shiemi stepped out after you, walking by your side out of the door and down to the beach. It seemed like you'd gotten there just in time. Shura stood in front of a crowd of exorcists, using a bullhorn to address the group as a whole.

"A'ight maggots! Lissen up!" You took Shiemi's hand, weaving through the crowd as Shura made her announcement. "Our target this time...is a kracken! The tourists have already evacuated, so we'll carry out our operation here!"

Apparently a fishing vessel had sunk and the regional coast gaurd had detected a giant mysterious object with their sonar. They'd called in the Knights of the True Cross and they'd figured out it was actually a kracken. There wasn't really a plan or anything, but your crew was on cleanup duty more than anything. For now though, you were allowed to chill.

"Yo! (Y/n)!" Rin waved you over after the crowd had dispersed. You walked over, Shiemi in tow. "This is just like our last trip to the beach! Looks like we're fighting another giant squid."

_"Another?"_ You blinked in confusion. You're last beach trip was just to do manual labor for extra credit...wasn't it? "You mean I smelled like grilled squid for an entire week _and I didn't even get to see the huge monster we were there for!?_ " 

Rin rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Seems like it..."

"Moriyama looks so nice in her swimsuit~" Shima drooled like a creep before turning to you. "But...what's with the sweatshirt, Faust?" 

You rolled your eyes, ignoring the gross commentary. You flexed your arm, grinning in a teasing manner. "Nothin' much, I just figured I wouldn't wanna make anyone jealous of how awesome I look in this swimsuit." 

"Idiot, who would feel jealous of you?" Bon scoffed, crossing his arms to try and appear more serious.

"I dunno." You shrugged nonchalantly before glaring at the dark-eyed dude. You leaned in, getting in his face with your own, taking him aback just slightly. "Maybe _split-haired muscle heads who secretly have a thing for wearing bikinis._ "

"Why you-!" You could practically see the vein popping up from his forehead. "Shut up!"

You knew it was cliche, but you couldn't help but respond. _"Make me!"_

Before you even had time to process it, you were lifted over Ryuuji's head and tossed into the ocean in one big _"SPLASH!"_

You stuck your head up out of the water, coughing up a bit of seawater you'd accidentally swallowed during the impact.

_"Bon!"_ Konekomaru scolded the taller boy. 

"Are you alright Miss (Y/n)?" Shiemi asked, treading into the water to help you out.

"Yeah." You ignored her assistance in favor of diving back into the water, swimming towards the shore as inconspicuously as possible. When you were close enough to your target, you popped up right in front of Ryuuji, squirting a mouthful of seawater out of your lips and into his face.

"GAH!" Suguro instinctively covered his face with his arm. "HEY!"

"You've gotta admit, she got you good, Bon!" Shima found it hard to stop laughing, holding his sides with Rin chuckling right next to him. "Hey! Why don't we settle things with a chicken fight?"

"Yeah! That sounds fun!" You quickly turned away from your glaring contest with Suguro to agree with Pinky's idea, your eyes sparkling. "But, I wanna be on Bon's team!"

"Huh!?" Ryuuji's eyes practically popped out of his sockets.

"You dummy! You were just arguing with that gorilla and now you want to team up with him?" Izumo scoffed, chilling in her inflatable donut where she could judge your group without having to interact with you directly. 

"Hell yeah!" You looked up at Ryuuji, an excited expression painting your features. " _I wanna be so frickin' tall!_ "

And that's how you found yourself on top of Ryuuji's shoulders, struggling against Rin who was lifted by Renzo, both of you trying to push the other into the water. Originally Shima was the one who was supposed to be carried, but soon you figured out that a contest of strength between a human and a half-demon wasn't much of a contest at all. 

Izumo simply floated nearby in her donut with Shiemi standing next to her, the latter giggling at your antics. She turned to the shore, shouting at your spectating teachers. "YUKI! Come play with us!"

Yukio refused, shaking his head silently in response. 

"Just let 'm be." Rin pouted, too distracted by your game to even glance over at his twin. "He's an official exorcist, so he's busy."

"Don't sweat it. We'll come to the beach again some other time and make him have fun." You hummed, trying to console your friend while also concentrating on pushing him into the ocean below.

"EVERYBODY, GET READY! IT'S HERE!" Soon enough, Shura starting shouting instructions through her speaker again. "It might be big, but it won't seem like much compared to the Impure King!"

Bon took this as the opportune moment to take hold of your legs and flip you off of his shoulders. You, once again, splashed into the ocean, this time popping out in a rush, not even bothering to get mad at Ryuuji...

...not to say that you wouldn't feed him to that squid immediately if given the opportunity.

"First-years and exwires, ready your flamethrowers!" Finally! The moment you'd been waiting for! 

You readied your weapon, admiring its build while standing next to your peers. You all waited for the kracken to come closer, but were ultimately surprised when it dived under the water's surface instead.

"It's not coming ashore...?" As soon as Shura voiced your group's confusion, a large tentacle shot up from the water, sinking the helicopter above it into the ocean below. "What!? Why didn't it attack the people on the beach!?"

_"Rin! Where are you going!?"_ You turned to see Rin and Shiemi board a nearby speedboat, quickly pursued by Yukio. 

"Yukio, stop!" Shura called out to no avail.

"Hey! Wait up for me!" You started sprinting towards the speedboat to join in their rebel behavior, only to be halted by the redheaded swordswoman taking hold of your sweatshirt's collar.

"Oh, no ya don't! It's bad enough we've got one half-demon on the loose, we don't need another!" Shura dragged you back towards your classmates, releasing you only when the boats were too far to catch up to. She looked to Suguro. "From now on, you two are beach buddies. Make sure she doesn't cause any trouble or I'll have Mephisto up my ass, alright?"

"Beach buddies!?" You and Ryuuji shouted in sync, neither of you too stoked about the situation.

At least it'd give you ample opportunity to feed him to the squid.

"Man, this sucks!" You kicked up the sand in front of you in a fit of frustration. "My best friend ditched me to fight a giant monster and I didn't even get to use my flamethrower!"

Apparently Rin and the rest found some sort of giant whale that they needed to make offerings too or it'd blow up or something.

You were willing to admit you weren't really paying attention after the word whale.

"Settle down and eat your lunch!" Suguro held out your pre-made bento, sitting on the stairs nearby.

You sighed, deciding to simply sit down next to him without making a fuss. Not like it'd help or anything.

"I wish this was one of Rin's bentos. It's been too long since I've had his food." Despite your words, you devoured your lunch, barely even chewing as you practically inhaled it.

"You're really mad Rin's taken off again, huh?" Shima said, sitting across from you.

"Not really." You sighed, answering honestly. "I just wish I wasn't missing all the action."

You placed your empty bento box next to you before stripping off your now-soaked sweatshirt. It was starting to get uncomfortable and, despite how reluctant you were to pull out your tail in front of others, it was feeling unpleasant being trapped underneath the article of clothing.

"W-why are you taking it off, you dummy!" Suguro sputtered, face reddening at the sight. 

"Cuz it's _soaked_ thanks to someone!" You socked the hoodie into his face with no regrets. Ryuuji was obviously unhappy with this, readying to start another tussle with you.

"Woah, Faust! I didn't know you had a tail!" Shima marveled at your furry appendage, watching as it wiggled behind you. It was the same color as your hair, the fur a lot shorter and smoother than what you'd seen on Rin's, the fur only flaring up at the very tip in a tiny ball of fluff that curled just slightly downwards.

"Yeah, the old man mentioned somethin' about showing it being 'improper' or whatever, but I haven't heard anything about it since." You explained angling your tail behind you to avoid too much of Shima's staring. "He's...kind of a weird guy."

"No kidding." You could tell Shima was reluctant to say anymore in your presence.

_"Everyone prepare for battle!"_ The command pierced your ears, disrupting whatever was left of your lunch break, and like that, everyone rushed to ready their weapons. You and your classmates stood at the shoreline, flamethrowers in hand.

You never thought you'd ever get to see a giant whale fight an enormous squid, but that was exactly what was happening in front of you. 

"You think we can convince Shura to get calamari after this?" You hummed, speaking to no one in particular.

"It's Shura, of course we can." Shima replied, standing a few feet away.

The battle between the beasts continued for a bit, but ultimately, the kracken was victorious. The squid lifted the whale, tossing it towards the shore with each of its mighty tentacles. Everyone on the shore panicked, trying to move out of its way before they could be crushed, however, a few people straggled and would most certainly die if you didn't act quickly.

Shoving a hand into your top, you pulled out you pocket watch from where you'd shoved it in earlier. By now you had the movements down by instinct, pressing down on the side button just before impact.

_"Hör jetzt auf!"_ And thus, time froze. 

You'd decided to start using phrases and commands to go with your abilities, kinda like names for them. You'd noticed pretty much every big-shot exorcist, including your father, did the same thing and while you weren't sure whether they just did it to look cool or keep them organized, you figured you'd try it out in an attempt to seem more professional.

Your head hurt, but not nearly as much as it had with the Impure King and it felt almost as if you could handle letting the time stop last a little longer as well. _Did you gain enough exp fighting the Impure King to level up?_

You didn't linger on the thought, rushing to push the straggling exorcists out of the way of the giant whale's body. You made good time, managing to get the last person to safety before the time freeze ended itself.

_"Nochmal beginnen!"_ Time resumed.

The whale crashed onto the beach with no casualties. You gave yourself a moment to pat yourself on the back, ego growing immensely in a fairly short amount of time. 

The kracken was now closer to the shore, thanks to the its fight with the whale, but, according to Shura, that only made it more of a danger. You regrouped with your peers just in time for the squid to spew smoke from its body, completely hiding its massive form. When the smoke finally cleared, several more krackens were wading the waters before you.

"There's MORE!?" Shima screamed, looking as if he was about to faint.

"Calm down! All but one of them are dummies!" Shura instructed, approaching one of the krackens fearlessly. "Hit 'm between the eyes to make the fakes disappear and find the real one!"

From out of the squids' tentacles, slimy balls shot out, only uncurling once they were on shore to reveal tiny, mini-versions of the krackens in front of you.

"Exwires, you'll be dealing with these babies!" Shura shouted. In turn you prepped your flamethrower for what felt like the fiftieth time that day, finally giving you the opportunity to use it.

"Awe, but they're so cute!" You whined, shooting them with flames despite your reservations. 

"Cute!? These things are trying to kill us!" Shima disagreed, destroying the nearest squids aiming to tear his face off. You resisted the urge to point out that Amaimon also tried to kill everyone, but he was also pretty cute in your opinion. At least as a hamster.

You silently wondered if you could leave one of these things alive and how much stuff you'd have to take out of your backpack in order to shove it in. 

As quickly as the giant squids appeared, they disappeared, smoke covering the area once again. You waved an arm in front of you in order to try and clear it from your persons, but it didn't do much. When the smoke cleared entirely, even the giant whale was gone, leaving a large skeleton in its wake.

And here you'd thought you might've just misheard the whole "explosion" thing.

"Whelp, that's enough 'beach' for me." You collapsed onto the sand below, stretching out on the warm bed comfortably. You closed your eyes. "Wake me up when it's time to go home."

You didn't receive any verbal response, everyone too busy scrambling around you to pay attention to your antics, and laid there for about five minutes before being disturbed. Tiny paws touched your scalp, crawling up your head before settling on your forehead. 

_"I thought we were supposed to be returning to True Cross."_ Amaimon sounded annoyed, clearly waking from his nap in a bad mood. You didn't open your eyes, simply reaching up and scratching the hamster's chin. 

"We had to fight some squid. I want calamari." You sighed, pausing your petting when Amaimon grabbed onto your finger using his tiny paws. 

_"You promised me we'd get mochi once we'd returned."_

"Don't worry, I didn't lie. We'll get it once Shura decides to stop taking us on detours." Amaimon settled down, seemingly satisfied with that. 

You cracked an eye open to meet the King of Earth's gaze from where he was looking down upon you.

"Hey, do you think if I ask nicely enough they'll let me keep the flamethrower?"


	41. Up to Bat {Bon Ending 1}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So the buff, split-haired tin man has a heart afterall. Who could've guessed?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey you guys. I'm late, I know, but for very different reasons than I'd mentioned before. I'll explain in a moment, but I'm going to give a Trigger Warning here for death just in case. I wanna explain a little, but I don't wanna accidentally hurt someone in the process, so if you're sensitive to that kind of thing, please skip this and continue to read the chapter and just know that the rest of the endings will be coming out later, just slowly. 
> 
> So, for those of you still reading this note at this point, you probably have a few questions: "Where's the other ending chapters? Don't you usually post those all together? Is the fic going on hiatus or something?" 
> 
> Well, I'll answer these questions the best I can. The truth is, someone very close to me passed away recently and I haven't been able to write anything since then. I'm seeking out a grief counselor now, so please don't feel concerned and don't worry about condolences either; I really don't want to use this tragedy just as a means to gain new comments on the fic even if it's unintentional. Just the fact that you enjoy reading is enough for me. 
> 
> If you really want to leave condolences, however, feel free to message me on discord or just leave it in a comment you were already planning on making at the end because you liked the chapter. Thank you.
> 
> Luckily, before this all happened, I'd finished Bon's ending and pretty much most of Mephisto's as well as the beginning of Shiemi's. I've decided for now that I don't wanna leave yall waiting for updates or go on a lengthy hiatus, especially when we're so close to Part 3, which is honestly my favorite so far plot-wise. So, I've decided that, for now, these endings will be posted separately, close to the regular schedule so you guys know I haven't forgotten you or this story. 
> 
> I'm very grateful for everyone's continued support. It makes me so happy to see that so many people enjoy this fic as much as I enjoy writing it. Thank you all so much.
> 
> Anyway, onto the chapter! I don't own Blue Exorcist! I hope you enjoy!!

Dozens of baseballs zipped your way at an alarming pace, too fast for any normal human being to even hope of hitting. For a sports-junkie half-demon like you, however, this was nothing.

You were at the newly refurbished batting cages, practicing your swing the day before break ended. It was actually a request from your father. He'd asked you to test out the new equipment and you couldn't exactly refuse seeing as you were at least a _little_ responsible for the destruction of the old ones. Not that you would've tried to refuse in the first place. 

The pitcher was on its highest setting, running seemingly smoothly so far with no jams yet whatsoever. Your father had clearly spared no expense on top-of-the-line machinery for the students here. People could say many things about Johann Faust, but he ran a _damn fancy school_. 

When the machine finally ran out of ammo, it automatically sputtered to a stop. 

You wiped the sweat from your brow using your forearm, catching your breath as you leaned against the fencing behind you. "That was...a pretty good workout..."

Someone behind you cleared their throat.

You turned around to see Suguro standing a few feet away from the cage and something told you he wasn't there to practice like you were. 

"Uh, hey." You stepped out of the cage, accepting the towel Ryuuji passed you to wipe your sweat more thoroughly. You dabbed your cheeks, grateful for the plush fabric's feel against your heated skin. "You need something?"

"Yeah, I just..." Ryuuji took a deep breath before suddenly pulling out a plastic bag. You recognized it as the baggies used at your favorite convenience store to bag items. 

You accepted the bag, surprised and confused. Looking inside of it, a bag of your favorite chips laid at the bottom. 

"I, uh, asked Okumura what kind you liked." Bon explained, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "I wanted to say...thanks."

You immediately popped open the bag, munching on the chips before he could even think of taking it back. Muffled by a mouth full of chips now, you voiced your confusion. "Why?"

"For what you did. Back in Kyoto." Bon looked like he was struggling to explain. Here you'd been judging him for being such a hardass this whole time, poor guy must've just been emotionally constipated. "You saved my life."

"Oh yeeeaaah." You remembered finally, finishing off the chips. You gave the split-haired guy a pat on the shoulder. "Don't sweat it. You probably would've done the same for me... _I think_."

Squishing the toned muscle of his shoulder, you blinked. You'd know he was a pretty well-built guy, but clearly you hadn't been paying enough attention during the beach fiasco to notice just how muscled he was. 

Bon was put off by the motion, but did nothing to stop you, instead watching red-faced as you poked at his shoulder. 

"Hey, you've gotta work out at least a little, right?" You looked at him, waiting for a nod of confirmation before continuing. "You play ball?"

And thus was the start of a very...athletic relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NORMAL END 2
> 
> This chapter is so short, I'm so sorry! I was planning on posting it with the others so the length would be valid. The next chapter will be out soon ;-;


	42. Fine, Keep Your Secrets {Mephisto Ending 2}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You weren't too happy about Shura and your dad's new relationship, but you'd suck it up for his sake. Maybe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey yall. Once again, I was wrong about predicting when I'd update. Whoops! 
> 
> On the brightside, this means yall get the rest of the endings now and that we're probably back to the regular update schedule of Mondays and occasionally Wednesdays. Woo!
> 
> After I'd released the last chapter, I somehow managed to crank out the rest of the endings, plus the next 2 and 3/4 chapters, so that's fun. The endings are kinda short, but yall get all of them together, plus the chapter to round off Part II, so it should be okay. Part III's intro'll probably be posted Wednesday-ish just cuz I'm hype.
> 
> I also wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who gave me their condolences. I really appreciate you guys, but I won't be responding to individual comments on it cuz I don't wanna accidentally use the incident for clout. You guys are awesome tho and I'm really lucky yall are here 💖
> 
> Anyway, back to business! I hope you enjoy!!!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!
> 
> *Also, just a heads up, but I was in a suuuuper weird headspace when I wrote these 👀*

You tried so hard to flush the image from your brain, but Shura just made it _so damn difficult._

Ever since you'd walked in on their little rendezvous, it seemed like the redheaded exorcist was visiting your father more and more, stopping by his office almost daily and even visiting the manor every so often. Could they be any less inconspicuous?

You thought a lot about what this meant for the future. You'd no longer hold a strict monopoly on your father's affection. They'd probably get married if things continued to go well and, if it came to it, maybe they'd even sire another child, increasing your household even further. 

You held mixed opinions on the prospect. You weren't a kid anymore, there was no reason you should've felt jealous. Shura and your old man could both make their own decisions and were in no way obligated to notify you regarding the status of their relationship. _Yet, still_ he could've at least told you before things started escalating.

Your thoughts were spiraling so quickly, it was beginning to make you dizzy.

You sat across from your father, eating dinner with him in the dining room for the first time since you'd returned from Kyoto. Well, more like _he_ was eating dinner while you poked around at the food in your bowl. You just weren't super hungry.

Mephisto, however, wasn't blind. Setting down his eating utensils, the elder demon smiled your way. "You know, this is your favorite flavor of instant ramen; usually you'd have devoured at least three bowls by now."

You shrugged, looking up and returning the expression. "I'm just not really hungry, I guess."

"This coming from the one constantly snacking to focus on _'gains'_ or whatever it is?" Mephisto scoffed, waving his hand in a dismissive motion. The table immediately shortened itself, your chair following the edge so that you and your father were now significantly closer. "Now, _tell Papa what's truly bothering you, mein kleiner schatz._ "

You mulled it over, chewing your lower lip as you debated just how to voice your opinion on the matter. You didn't wanna seem judgmental or accidentally sound like a total brat, so you had to go about this carefully. After thinking it over for a solid thirty seconds, you took a deep breath and went for it.

"If she makes you happy...I'll be alright with whatever you decide." You closed your eyes, smiling softly. Yes, this was your final conclusion. "What's important is that you're good to each other, so don't worry about me! Okay?"

"..."

Mephisto rested his chin on folded hands, elbows propped vertically on the oak wood below. He was quiet, which made you nervous, though that nervousness soon changed to confusion when he finally opened his mouth again.

"I'm sorry, _who_?" 

You blinked, stunned that he'd ask such a thing. If he truly couldn't tell based off of what you'd said then that must mean...

... _he was seeing more than one woman!?_

"Hmm? Would you hurry up and tell me what's with that look of disgust on your face?" Mephisto kept his smile, but looked weary, almost as if he'd regretted asking.

"I can't believe it! My own father!" You stood straight up, looking away from the demon king. "A playboy!"

That was a super gross thing to think about. He was your dad! It was weird enough to think about him being in a romantic relationship, now this?

"Excuse me?" Mephisto only seemed more confused, however, continued to smile even if it looked like it was tiring.

"Well, I _was_ referring to that redheaded woman originally," You sighed, elaborating if even just a little. "But, if this is the kind of lifestyle you prefer, I won't stop you."

"Aaaah, now I understand." The headmaster began chuckling, sweeping up his short bangs as he laughed. He leaned back in his seat, relaxed, much to your surprise. "This is a misunderstanding about what you'd witnessed the other day, yes?"

"A misunderstanding?" You looked back to the elder demon.

"Yes, Pumpkin. I'm afraid Miss Kirigakure and I are not in any sort of relationship, nor am I currently seeing _anyone_ for that matter." Your father's laughter died down, allowing him to look you in the eyes again. "When you walked in, Miss Kirigakure was just doing me the pleasure of showcasing that lovely knife of hers up close."

She was...just showing him her knife? You didn't quite understand the implication, but you couldn't help but feel a little better anyway.

"So you're really not seeing anyone..?" You thought on this for a moment, eventually letting out a sigh of relief. You relaxed in your seat once again. "You know...if you _did_ decide to start dating, I'd support you, right?"

"I know, Pumpkin." Mephisto was the one to stand this time, giving you a gentle pat on the head in praise. "However, I can assure you that if I do ever pursue someone romantically, _I will be setting my sights a bit higher than Miss Kirigakure._ "

"Thank goodness." You wiped imaginary sweat from your brow. "Having your dad's girlfriend as your teacher sounds embarrassing. I don't think Rin would ever let me live it down."

Good thing you never mentioned your suspicions to him. 

Mephisto chuckled, eyeing you with a mischievous gaze you weren't too fond of. As much as you tried to rid yourself of the feeling, it gave you a sense of unease as if he knew something you weren't aware of quite yet. 

You knew even if you asked, however, he'd simply reassure you that nothing was wrong, which somehow only worried you even more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NORMAL END 3


	43. Pact of Strength {Shiemi Ending 2}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiemi helps you study, but unfortunately she seems hung up over incidents from the past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please read the notes from last chapter ^^
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Thanks again for helping me study, Shiemi." You flashed the blonde a grin of appreciation, plopping down on the cushion placed on the floor for you to sit. Shiemi had offered to help you catch up academically with the rest of the exwires before classes officially started up again.

"No problem! I'm so happy you could come visit me." Shiemi took the seat across from you, pulling out some books from her bag she'd insisted you look over together. They were mostly about pharmaceuticals, botany and the like, but you weren't gonna complain. It was sure to be more interesting than whatever Yucky-o would've tutored you in anyway. 

You picked up the first book, flipping through and eyeing the plants in the images inside. You started to mutter under your breath, not paying much attention to what you were actually saying. "I wonder If Amaimon would know anything about these..."

A loud ' _clunk_ ' sound prompted you to look up from where you were reading, only to be met with Shiemi's horrified expression. She'd dropped the textbook she'd been holding, frozen in shock from her seat across from you.

"Did you say... _Amaimon?_ " Ah shit. You did didn't you? Shiemi was practically shaking in her seat, tears welling to the corners of her eyes. " _Why?_ "

You scrambled to come up with an excuse, put off by her question completely.

"Uh, ya know, it's just that he's King of Earth and all so I was just curious! That's it!" You quickly explained, slamming the book shut in your panic. 

"Is that all...?" Shiemi looked down at her lap, clutching the fabric of her kimono as if it were a matter of life or death.

Your expression softened, worried over her unusually distraught attitude. You spoke softly. "I'm sorry, I didn't know you were so afraid of him..."

The blonde gardener was silent for a moment, but took a deep breath before her next reply.

"I don't see how you're not; he almost spirited you away..." Tears began falling from Shiemi's cheeks as her gentle voice started to break. "He could've hurt you and I was too weak to do anything!"

"Shiemi..." You stood up, only to sit down again next to her. You were close enough now that your shoulders touched together. You grasped one of her clutched hands, holding it tightly in your own. "It's okay, I was never in any real danger. Apparently my father set the whole thing up!"

"Still, even if that's true-" Shiemi looked up, meeting your gaze with her own. Her cheeks were completely flushed from crying and you couldn't help but admire the strange beauty brought out by her reddened cheeks. "I want to be stronger so that I don't have to worry about someone taking you away from me ever again!" 

Your eyes widened at the declaration, your face heating up in a rosey flush to match the fragile girl's.

You couldn't help yourself in that moment. You leaned in slowly, but it felt too brief all the same. Your lips softly touched to the gentle beauty's own, eyes closing as the beat of your heart pounded through your ears. 

All too soon, you pulled away, Shiemi's tears no longer shedding. You used your free hand to cup her cheek, brushing the still-wet trail away with your thumb.

"Let's both get stronger, okay?" You smiled in reassurance. "That way, neither of us have to worry about some demon whisking us away."

Shiemi merely nodded softly, as if she still hadn't quite processed what'd just happened. She was pretty much distracted that way for the rest of your session.

Needless to say, you didn't get much studying done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GOOD END 2


	44. Someone's in the Kitchen {Rin Ending 2}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You go over to Rin's place to beg for food, as usual, yet it seems Rin has something on his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please read the chapter note in Mephisto's end!!! 
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!!

" _Thirty whole minuuuutes!?_ " You whined, slumping against the kitchen island in, truthfully, a rather pathetic manner. "But I'm hungry _noooow!_ " 

"Dem's the breaks! I told you, cooking takes patience." Rin shook his head at you in faux disappointment. "You're the one who wanted to cook something here instead of going home."

He was right. You'd invited yourself to the Okumura's dorm for dinner, knowing Yucky-o was working late that night and that Rin would subsequently be alone for the evening. 

"Yeah, but all we've eaten for dinner since we got home from Kyoto is instant ramen! Papa's refusing to cook anything else and he's barred me from the kitchen entirely!" You pouted, hoping the ravenette would be merciful.

"Why don't you order that butler guy to fix something for you?" Rin raised a brow, cleaning off the whisk he'd just used with a dishrag.

"His food's not as good as yours..." You muttered, deflating further onto the island. "Plus...I wanted to see you before we had to start classes again..."

The whisk Rin'd been cleaning clattered to the floor, drawing your attention to the other half-demon. He was stiff, his face reddening rapidly as he clutched the dishrag to his side. 

"You...w-wanted to see me?" The raven-haired exwire stuttered, clearly caught off guard. "W-why?"

"I mean, we'll both be studying our butts off to pass that exorcism license exam or whatever it is as soon as classes start up again, so we probably won't get to have time like this to hang out just you and me for a while." You explained, sighing as you stood up straighter. 

Rin went silent, his azure eyes trailing up and down your figure as if to read what was going on inside of that head of yours.

"Is that really all?" The other nephilim spoke softly, drawing your attention to his face. He wore a conflicted expression, worrying you a bit. 

"What do you mean?" You stepped closer, confused, but more concerned with how Rin was feeling than anything.

The ravenette chewed on his lower lip for a moment before taking a deep breath.

"(Y/n), what exactly am I to you?" Rin finally breathed out, meeting you with a serious gaze, despite the rosy color slowly spreading up his entire face. " _Why did you kiss me on top of the bell tower?_ "

You could feel your eyelids shoot up in shock. Why _had_ you done that?

"I...I don't know..." You answered honestly, your voice coming out much softer than it's typically boisterous volume. You tried your hardest to explain. "It's like...when I'm near you, something feels...different inside of me."

You could feel the blood flooding to your cheeks in nervousness as you tried to find the proper words.

"Ever since my half-demon side was awakened, I wanted to keep you close to me and I never wanted to leave your side." You continued, looking anywhere but those beautiful eyes of sapphire. "It's like some kind of demonic instinct that I just always wanna be close to you. I-I have no clue why." 

You finally found the courage to lock eyes, finding Rin stunned in response to your confession.

"Maybe I...like you?" You swallowed nervously.

In the next moment, you found a pair of coarse lips clumsily smashed against your own. Rin's hands clutched your shoulders, pulling you closer as he kissed you with his chapped lips, screwing his eyes shut completely. 

You found yourself returning the poorly-coordinated kiss before you knew it, leaving your hands to hang at your sides as you leaned in, now closer than you feel like you'd ever been to the demonic prince you were lucky enough to call your friend.

The two of you stayed like that until you were harshly interrupted by the shrill screeches of the kitchen's timer.

_"Please, don't be burnt! Please, don't be burnt!"_ Hastily, Rin pulled away, rushing to the oven to pull out the food you'd been waiting for the entire time. 

Strangely enough, you'd forgotten all about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GOOD END 3


	45. Promotion ~Part II Epilogue~

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Congratulations on becoming an Exwire! Considering you shot the Impure King in the face, you figured you'd pretty much earned the position fair and square.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 45! Woohoo!
> 
> I know I do this a lot, but I really am thankful for how much support I've gotten and that y'all enjoy this fic so much. I really hope you enjoy and feel as excited for Part 3 as I am! 
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"CONGRATULATIONS!" Party poppers went off all around you, making you feel kinda sorry for the shop's employee who'd ultimately wind up cleaning up the entire mess after you'd leave.

Your father was so generous as to take you and your classmates to get monja in celebration of your official promotion to exwire. Now, you were finally caught up with everyone else. In ranking at least.

"Thank you so much!" You smiled from your seat between Rin and Suguro. Amaimon was perched on your shoulder while your father sat at the head of the table. Izumo and Shiemi sat across from you with Shima and Koneko further down. "Please, continue to take good care of me!"

Rin ruffled your hair playfully in response. "Let's eat! I call first dibs!"

" _Hey!_ I'm the one we're celebrating here!" You protested, knocking his arm down and glaring at the other nephilim.

"Allow me to solve this dilemma." Mephisto spoke up, readying to take the freshly made monja for himself. "This _is_ being paid for by yours truly, afterall."

"Papa!" You pouted, disappointed, but unsurprised. 

_"Here."_

Bon passed you a plate of monja that'd been grilling simultaneously on the second grill next to the batter you'd all been arguing over. 

"Woah! You're really giving this to me?" You accepted the plate gratefully, clearly surprised by the display.

"Hey! Don't look so shocked!" Bon scolded, already starting on the next circle of batter. 

"I can't decide if you dummies like each other or hate each other." Izumo scoffed, starting to construct her own plate of monja. "Just decide already and stop being so gross in public!"

Bon's face went red, causing him to turn away so he was looking anywhere that wasn't directly at you. It was a good thing too or else he would've have noticed the three sets of glares directed his way, originating from the trio of demons sitting on his other side. 

"Thank you, Suguro." You smiled, ignoring Izumo since you were pretty used to her comments by now. 

You offered Amaimon a bite your food, who eagerly accepted, temporarily forgetting his frustrations on not being able to utterly annihilate any human suitor that crossed your path. Rin, on the other hand, pouted from his seat next to you. This time, you noticed the sour expression on his face.

"Here, Rin. Try some of this one." You offered the other half-demon your plate, who eagerly accepted. 

"Woah! This is seriously good!" Rin praised, swallowing the chunk he'd taken. "Hey, Bon! Grill me one next, please!"

"You're right in front of a grill, make your own!" The rest of the group laughed, much to Suguro's chagrin.

You knew somewhere in your heart that very soon, these would become the people dearest to you. If they weren't already, that is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PART 2 END


	46. Gone to the Dog ~Part III Prologue~

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One demon's trash digger is another demon's pet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Part 3! I hope yall are hype too!
> 
> Ya boi got more chapters done including some _special_ chapters you unfortunately can't see until later cuz of spoilers, but they're special adult chapters that'll have their own fic uwu
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy!
> 
> I don't own Blue Exorcist!

"Awe, man! Of course it's gonna rain right when I want convenience store munchies." You sighed, quickly pulling out the umbrella your father had insisted you take, despite the fact the skies were clear up until just a moments ago.

Your break was finally over, which only meant you quickly had to figure out how to balance schoolwork, sports, and cram school all at once, which was a total bummer. You had to drop quite a few teams thanks to your schedule, disappointing many of you former teammates and probably dealing considerable damage to your popularity. Oh well. 

To be honest, you cared more about your friends in the exorcist school than anyone you knew from sports. 

You were on your way home from basketball practice, one of the few sports you decided to stick with, when you were suddenly pulled from your thoughts by a rustling noise coming from nearby. Your attention was drawn to an alleyway to your right. There, you spotted a round, shady figure rustling menacingly through piles of garbage, unaware of your presence just yet. 

Curious, you stepped forward brazenly, figuring that after taking on the Impure King, you were practically invincible from small fries like this. Certainly a bold assumption, but not necessarily a wise one. 

"Hey!" You called out, to get the monster's attention. The figure immediately froze, slowly turning in your direction. Your eyes immediately met a much larger set, though you stood your ground regardless.

You and the creature stared each other down like this for all but 2 seconds before the beast came barreling towards you. You readied your stance for battle, tossing the umbrella onto the cold, wet pavement below. 

All of a sudden, however, you froze. The threatening expression on your face soon turned into one of confusion before you were tackled to the ground by a formidable force.

You slowly creeped inside of the manor, hoping to direct as little attention as possible your way as you snuck in. 

You examined the foyer, hoping it was empty, unlike when you'd left. Luckily for you, there wasn't a trace of life anywhere, human or demonic in origin. You were in the clear. 

Giving a sigh of relief, you turned around and softly closed the entrance's door behind you.

_"Good evening, Miss. I presume your 'snack run' went well?"_

You nearly jumped out of your skin as Belial's voice rang through the previously vacant hall. Turning to face him, you attempted to act as naturally as possible. 

"Uh, yeah! Thanks for asking!" You grinned, stepping further inside. You made a beeline for the stairwell, walking quickly in hopes that the butler wouldn't say anything about the elephant in the room. "Quick question: do you know if Papa's working late tonight?"

"Yes, Miss. He sent word that he won't be returning for another hour or so." Perfect.

"What a bummer." You shook your head in mock disappointment, instantly chippering up afterwards. "Well, I'm, like, suuuuper tired, so I'm just gonna use his bath and then head to bed. Night!"

"As you wish, Miss." Belial remained stone-faced, watching as you retreated up the stairwell with much haste. If he'd noticed the malformed bulge underneath your coat, he certainly didn't show any signs of it via facial expression.

You kicked open the door to the master bath, clutching your extra passenger with one arm as you entered. You shut the door behind you using the heel of your foot without bothering to lock it. You never did. 

There wasn't really a point in locking any doors in this household when every resident was a demon who had their own unique way of getting in one way or another, locked door or not. Besides, with a demonic sense of smell, it was pretty easy to tell when a room like this was in use, so it's not like anyone could just _barge in on you_ or anything.

You approached the porcelain tub, emptying your jacket's content inside of it carefully. Almost immediately, a long, slimy tongue made contact with your face. 

"Behemoth! Chill!" You giggled, reaching over to start the water. Indeed, it was Amaimon's pet dog you'd encountered in the alleyway, though you had strong suspicions now that the green cutie was actually a demon. Just like everything else in your life. 

You were even starting to suspect the convenience store clerk was a demon at this point.

In just a few minutes, you had a wet, soapy goblin baby in your bathtub, sloshing around happily in the water. Your clothes were soaked, but you figured it was worth it if you could get the furry demon to smell any less like garbage.

"I swear, if I didn't know you belonged to Amaimon, I would've figured you were probably a familiar of Astaroth." That's right; you learned more demon stuff. Your vocabulary was now full of demonology terms thanks to your rigorous studying. You still felt pretty far from catching up to the other exwires, but you took comfort in knowing if push came to shove you could always use your time powers to cheat off of Kamiki when it came time to take the big exam. Not that you tested this out in regular classes or anything. 

As long as you father wasn't one of the test prompters, you should get away with it with general ease, especially if you were finally able to use your abilities without the stopwatch the way you'd been practicing lately. You'd opted only to use this as a last resort, however, it'd make a good plan B. 

"C'mere ya little _moss-terror terrier_." That was all Behemoth needed as cue to jump into your awaiting arms. You wrapped him up in the fluffy, fuchsia towel you'd prepared, hoping your dad wouldn't notice the smell of wet goblin if it happened to linger after Belial did laundry. 

During the process of drying your new demonic companion, your ears twitched, picking up the sound of your favorite song ringing from your back pocket. You mindlessly began to hum along until it registered in your brain that you should probably pick up your phone. 

Fishing out your cell and putting it on speaker, you placed it on the floor and continued to dry behemoth's fur. 

" _Ja_?" You worked carefully to dry behind the demon's ears. 

_"Hey, (Y/n), are you busy?"_ Rin's voice rang out from your phone's speaker. 

"Nope, not really." You answered, ditching the towel to search for your dad's largest blow dryer. Which would probably take a while considering he never cancelled his subscription to the _blow dryer of the month club_. "Why, what's up?"

_"You wouldn't happen to know if your old man has any way to make it so that someone affected by a temptaint can't see demons anymore, would you?"_ Rin asked, shuffling around a bit in the background. _"I met this guy today and he's super scared of 'm."_

"I'll ask..." You could probably give him a better answer if you could actually remember what a temptaint was. "My dad doesn't get back for a while though, so I'll have to get back to you tomorrow."

_"Awesome! I knew I can count on you!"_ Your face flushed in embarrassment from the demon boy's declaration. You could practically hear his smile from the other end of the phone. _"I'll catch up with you tomorrow then."_

"Yup. I'll see ya then." You hummed in response, listening as the other half-demon hung up on his end, leaving you alone with Behemoth once again. You grasped the hair dryer you'd finally managed to locate, spinning it around once in your hand before gripping it. Then, you smiled at the beast. "I hope you like pink~"

Behemoth tilted his head innocently, gazing up at you.

_"...you groomed my Behemoth."_ Amaimon stared at your handiwork, eyeing his familiar with an unreadable expression. Said familiar sat happily on the floor in front of your bed, panting heavily as his long, floppy tongue hung out of his mouth. A pink bowtie was hung around his neck in the position his spiked collar had once been. His fur sparkled as a result of one of your father's many gels you'd dumped into the bath mix, each hair now clean with a slick, glossy shine. 

"Yup! Now he doesn't smell like Shiemi's compost bin." You ran your brush through your hair, continuing your nightly routine as usual. The King of Earth sat on top of the foot of your bed frame, not paying you an ounce of attention for once. The silence was almost a welcomed change.

A soft, yet distinct knock came from your door, drawing your attention that way. You ditched the brush on a nearby dresser, jogging up to answer as quickly as possible. 

You cracked open the door only wide enough to fit your figure, hiding Behemoth's presence behind you. You only hoped the smile you offered Mephisto didn't seem too forced. "Yes, Papa?"

" _Guten abend, Prinzessin_." Oh ghenna, that was your 'definitely in trouble' pet name; he definitely knew what was up. If that wasn't evidence enough, the tight smile on your father's face definitely gave it away. "A little _vögelchen_ told me you smuggled in a surprise into the manor~"

"Uh, nooooo..." You denied nervously, immediately followed by a crash coming from the background.

" _(Y/n) Pheles_..." Nice to know which last name of yours was more canonical now at least. " _Is that a dog_?"

You brought your hands together, pressing them against your lips before rotating then towards him reminiscent of the pelican's neck in one of your favorite memes. "Define _dog_." 

Mephisto frowned, an expression you surprisingly only saw on rare occasions considering he was a literal demon. Beads of sweat started to form at your temples in nervousness. His eyes began to glower as his tone shifted in warning. "My memory must be failing me because, the last we spoke of it, I could have _sworn_ I told you _no_."

"Weeeell..." You gave a nervous chuckle. "It's kinda, _technically_ , not a dog and it's also _technically_ Amaimon's, not mine."

Mephisto raised a gloved hand to rub his temples. "Tell me you did not find that hobgoblin on campus and bring it home."

" _Noooo..._ " You rocked back on the balls of your feet. "I found him _in the garbage_ and brought him home."

Bad answer.


End file.
